Captains License

[dreamweaver66]

Well I submitted my application for my 50T Masters on Nov 27 In Baltimore, Md. I hope all goes well and get it soon.

 

[Finalee]

Congratulations. The hard part is done.

 

[Pascal]

actually, the hardest part is waiting months for your file to move up the queue...

 

[Bill Allen]

First congrats. My ticket sits in Baltimore I've always been very pleased with the guys there. Well, except on my last renewal when I had to fly back from Florida to get fingerprinted despite this being my fourth renewal. They claimed it was due to the new security measures. Took about a month before I had it in hand.

 

[Liquid Asset]

Good Luck, I just hope you are nto in a Hurry, My license took 5 Months from the time I submited it to recieve it.

 

[Finalee]

From Baltimore last year mine only took a month. I remember the class instructor cautioned us to NOT get the people in Baltimore ticked off. I did hear some taking up to 6 months.

 

[#9Hatteras41]

i got mine out of Boston and it was quick and easy... even with a new age digital finger printer... no ink on your fingers...

 

[Pascal]

it varies depending on the time of the year...i was told that Boston is usually quick but delays grow longer in summer...

 

[dreamweaver66]

Well my license came in the mail today I got a 50T Masters Inland and a OUVP near coastal. It took almost 3 months

 

[Jaxfishgyd]

Mine comes up for renewal in a few months.... Several of my buddies renewed theirs in Oct and only one has received his... They were not happy with all the "hoops and barrels" they had to jump thru....

 

[Bob Bradley]

My renewal comes up in July. What sort of hoops can I expect? This will be the first time I'm renewing.

 

[captddis]

You will need to go to the exam center and get finger printer again. First you fill out a bunch of forms and need to use different colored inks for different forms and get the latest, a TWIC card. Which means you will have a background check and be "interviewed", all for the bargain price of 132.50!!


Oh yeah, you fill out more paperwork for your renewal documenting sea time as well as a urine test and physical and 95.00 plus physical and urine test cost. Then you will wait months for your license.

 

[bobk]

Are you going to use the ticket to make a living? If not, consider this. A lawyer friend advised me that a CG license holder will be held to a higher standard of accountability than a person with out the license in the event of an incident. He said don't brag about it, and drop it if it isn't necessary.

Bob

 

[Dave Phipps]

Leave it to a certain class of reprehensible lawyers to exploit the responsible boater who endeavors to learn more about what he's doing so he can be safer. The general boating public probably benifits by having educated operators as well. While we (licensed skippers) are human and will make mistakes, the idea is that the educated or trained operator should make fewer of them.

Most marine accidents are adjudacated by apportioning blame based on the specifics of an incident. To imply that a licensed skipper should bear more blame in any given situation simply because he should "know better" is simply BS. You can bet the licensed skipper's admiralty lawyer would focus on the "unlicensed" operator....after all, the rules apply equally to all boaters in ANY kind of watercraft, regardless of whether or not all parties are licensed.

When was the last time you saw the typical casual recreational boater (AKA Capt. Jet Ski) studying rules of the road? It would make at least as much sense to argue that the unlicensed skipper may be taking something too casually, but we wouldn't do that either. It's the facts of a particular incident that merit scrutiny...but sadly, certain attorneys will exploit something like this for money.


Dave Phipps

 

[SKYCHENEY]

I tend to agree that you might be better off by not renewing unless you really have a legitimate reason to do so. The license itself is just a piece of paper. The actually test and studying for it as well as personal experience mean much more than a government issued paper. I'm not saying that we should discourage people from learning the information necessary to become licensed, I just don't know why you should pay for it if you don't really need it.

 

[Pascal]

this higher standard theory comes up all the time... yet nobody has EVER shown proof... like a judgement where it said that the license meant the captain woudl be held to a higher standard.

i can't understand why someone woudln't renew something they worked for...

 

[Dave Phipps]

I'd like to think that those of us who have licenses don't need to worry about undue legal liability. We shoudn't feel pressure to just let them expire...who knows, maybe you'll want to run an excursion boat for someone in your "retirement." And the truth is, having to renew them at 5 year intervals helps to get your head back in the books again.

I think the point here is that where recreational boaters are concerned, one boater can not be held to a higher standard than another....the rules apply equally to all on the water, and make no provision for the fact that one boater has a license and another might not.

For example, in the event of an accident, if the operator apportioned 75% of the blame has a license, and the other (unlicensed) operator 25%, does that mean that the financial penalty to the licensed operator should be in excess of 75% of the damages? What if it were the inverse; would the courts decree that the licensed operator pay less than the 25% of damages because he had the license, and therefore shouldn't be held as accountable?

If the licensed operator was working commercially as a skipper, and his vessel accidently runs down a recreational boater, that's a bit more obvious...there is liability there to be sure. Some commercial skippers carry personal liablility insurance for that reason.

In a civil suit where the plaintiff is alleging negligence of the licensed operator and seeking punitive damages, the standard of proof would have to refer to the generally accepted seamanlike adherance to all of the applicable rules, including state and local regulations.

To be awarded punitive damages, the plaintiff would have to prove gross negligence, and that would involve intentional disregard for the rules, incompetence, or other serious misconduct, such as alcohol or drug use. In this sense, I believe there is more liability for the licensed skippers because they will not only lose their license, (it will be revoked), but they may be subject to other government penalties as well.

I did ask my insurance broker once if having the license would subject me to additional scrutiny from the underwriters, or if the underwriters would consider a licensed recreational boater as a potentially higher risk for a higher payout in the event of an accident and it's subsequent litigation, and the broker said no, that most underwriters viewed the license favorably. I wonder if that's the case in all regions of the country.

Dave

 

[Boatsb]

My insurance is based on recreational use only and I was told the only company that writes older boats over 40 foot would require additional $$$$$ if it were for commercial or charter use. Having a license makes it "suspect" therefore I understood the "hint" as not a good thing.

Just for my information though is the fingerprinting and background check for all licenses now or just masters? I was under the assumption that 6 pack tickes were not as much as a PITA.

 

[captddis]

AFAIK all licenses required fingerprints for the first issue, then after that only sea time verification a physical and drug test. I had my 5th renewal last year and everyone had to get fingerprinted again at renewal. Now the TWIC requirement which will entail another fingerprint and background check. Of course I had to get a fingerprint and backgrouind check for my CWP also.
If only they were this careful with the radical islamists who commit the terrorism and not burden the merchant mariners!

 

[Boatsb]

Remember as an American you are granted the privilege of driving, operating a vessel for hire, carrying a gun ect. As an immigrant (especially an illegal one) you have rights that can not be violated. Even if you are attempting to do something that we need to have the privilege granted for. The ACLU will stand up for the aliens rights but the hard working citizens of this country are on their own.