Offering use of canoes and litigation fears

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baltipine
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Offering use of canoes and litigation fears

Post by baltipine »

Hi,
I'm new here and have searched but found nothing about this.

We rent out a lovely waterside house in the South Hams (Devon) and much of our own enjoyment of the area comes from using our little boat and sit on top canoes.

Some guests have spotted the canoes in the shed and asked if they can use them. I have refused as I'm unsure as to our responsibilities and potential litigation should anyone be hurt when using them.

Does anyone else offer use of boats or canoes and do they provide life jackets? What disclaimers do they use?

I can't really ask our caretaker to inspect the canoes & life jackets after each rental so I tend to think that offering boats is a facility too far at the moment........

Thanks in advance for your comments.

BP.
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greenbarn
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Post by greenbarn »

I think it would be a brave step, and quite possibly unwise........ We thought very briefly about having mountain bikes available for guests, and dismissed the idea very quickly due to the potential for risk and responsibility; sad but true. Fortunately we can point guests at a local place that hires mountain bikes and we stay out of the loop - guests deal directly with the hirer. I'd guess that canoes would carry an equal if different risk, (although there may not be the equivalent of shedding a chain and being stranded in the middle of nowhere due to poor maintenance) and I'm not convinced that any amount of signed disclaimers would remove your perceived responsibility to anyone using them, even if no explicit charge was made for their use. Maybe a question to your insurers about liability would shed some light?

Depressing, isn't it? Can anyone foresee the time when people are allowed to choose their own risk level? Thought not. :roll:
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kendalcottages
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Post by kendalcottages »

Yes, I would be extremely wary for the same reasons.

Is there a local company that could help you out here?

I know here in the Lakes there are one or two companies that will deliver a kayak to wherever you are staying, along with roof rack, safety equipment, etc. and collect it back at the end of the day.
Kendal Holiday Cottages Ltd., Kendal, Cumbria - between the Lake District & the Yorkshire Dales.
Wendy@NorthIdaho
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Post by Wendy@NorthIdaho »

We offer a canoe and a rowboat, along with various sizes of life jackets. We do not charge for them and they are locked up with the key in the cottage so only our guests can use them. In our contract it states that they are responsible, etc... for any mishaps, etc.. (including in the house as it's not up to current codes since it was built 50 years ago). We are in the USA so not sure how different things are here but so far (one year) it's been o.k. I know other rental homes here do the same things, one specifically has their guests sign a waiver. We are actually thinking about adding the option of renting a small motor from us if people want to use one on the row boat instead of oars :)

They do seem to be a draw as guests coming from a distance don't need to bring a boat to get out on the water. Helpful for the fishermen...

Wendy
New Vacation Rental called DayStar Lodge! (Sold Narrows Cottage now have a rental management company called A-List Rental Management)
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kendalcottages
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Post by kendalcottages »

Wendy@NarrowsCottage wrote:In our contract it states that they are responsible, etc... for any mishaps, etc..
IANAL (and not in the US) but I would imagine that if there was an incident, heaven forbid, and a court deemed that the canoe or boat was unworthy for use, that that contract would stand for little.
Kendal Holiday Cottages Ltd., Kendal, Cumbria - between the Lake District & the Yorkshire Dales.
baltipine
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Post by baltipine »

Thanks for the responses. It doesn't sound like many risk it in the UK and I don't think we will either.

Thanks for the idea of using a local company - there is somebody who does it but they don't have a website or a published list of prices or anything. I will try call him and ask if I can put his phone number and charges on our website.

Not ideal, but probably safer (for us)!

Cheers,
BP.
"The true test of intelligence is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we don't know what to do."

http://www.nossvoss.co.uk
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