Are you working near, over or on the water? If you are, or going to be, then please Note!
If a boat is being used for financial gain, for example, carrying Fare Paying Passengers, or getting paid for commercial work, i.e. safety boat, survey or security work, then the boat must be commercially endorsed under MCA or local harbour regulations. Likewise the boat operator (skipper) must be commercially endorsed. A RYA Level 2 powerboat certificate or RYA Safety Boat Certificate does not meet the required standard on its own!
Another misunderstanding is that safety/work boats should also have a crewmember present; how does a skipper drive the boat and recover a man overboard at the same time…? In the unlikely even of an accident you may find yourselves falling short of your RAMS.
Even though a lot of waterborne operations are now undertaken using pontoons or similar, which we can also provide... In the eyes of the law, if anyone is working above, on or near water they should be able to be recovered and assist a worker in trouble without delay. For example if working from a pontoon on tidal waters and there were to be a man overboard, then the pontoon, lifejacket or lifebuoy would not meet the required safety measures of any normal RAMS, the person would need to be able to be recovered from the water, which is carrying them away from the site.
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