SOLAS V for small leisure boats

In July 2002, regulations contained in Chapter V of the Convention for Safety of Life At Sea (SOLAS Chapter V) came into force. Traditionally, such regulations applied only to commercial craft. However, since July 2002, some of these now apply to all vessels, including small leisure craft.

So what does this mean to those of us who use small leisure craft for pleasure? The following is a summary of what is required and how to comply with the regulations.

Passage Planning

This regulation requires us to plan our trip, taking into account the following:

Weather: Get an up to date weather forecast and keep an eye on the weather when we’re out there.

Tides: Check the tidal conditions (height and direction of flow) before setting out.

Limitations of vessel and crew: Ask ourselves: Is the boat and crew up to the proposed trip?

Navigational dangers: Check for any navigational hazards, check the chart, ask for local advice, and make our plan accordingly.

Contingency plan: Always have one. Work out where are your bolt holes if anything goes wrong, have an emergency plan to deal with any incident we think is likely, such as lost divers, equipment failure, deteriorating visibility, bad weather and so on.

Leave details ashore: Make sure someone knows our plan, and of course stick to it so that if anything goes wrong, the search and rescue services have an idea of where we are.

Radar Reflector

Since many vessels use radar at sea, and it is a useful means of “seeing” other vessels, the regulations require a radar reflector to be fitted “if practable”. Basically, this means that if the boat has a mast, A-frame, cabin or similar structure to which a radar reflector could be fitted, then it must be fitted. If the boat is 15 metres in length, or over, a radar reflector of at least 10m² must be fitted. If the boat is less than 15 metres in length, the largest radar reflector possible must be fitted. Any radar reflector should be fitted as high as possible to maximise its effectiveness

Life Saving Signals

We must have access to an illustrated table of lifesaving signals to allow us to communicate with the search and rescue services or other vessels if we are in trouble. Many nautical publications are producing such tables. The regulation does allow that if our boat is unsuitable to carry this table (small and open or exposed), we don’t have to carry the table, but we must be familiar with its contents.

Assistance to other craft

This regulation requires us to notify the Coast Guard of anything we encounter in the vicinity, which might cause a hazard to navigation, if it has not already been reported. The regulation also requires us to respond to any vessel we see or hear in distress and help as best as we can.

Misuse of distress signals

It is an offence to misuse distress signals of any kind. Apart from anything else, it can out other people’s lives at risk. So don’t set off out of date flares!

Basically, it’s all common sense, and the sort of thing we all should be doing anyway.