Question about Salvaged Boats

[skrap1r0n]

I got to thinking about this. Every time a hurricane or bad storm comes through, I always see, in the shots that are taken from a helicopter, a marina with a bunch of boats piled up in a jumble.

Now my question is, are these boats worth anything? I know that with cars and motorcycles, many times, they will total a vehicle, when it isn't always necessary.

Providing there is no major structural damage, and one was willing to refit it and such, are these boats generally a good deal? Also, where would one go/who would one contact to look for these boats?

[T37Chef]

I asked a similar question months ago...what happens to all these boats (damaged and salvaged) and their gear, specifically the ones that the insurance companies "buy".

Is there a "junk yard" for boats? I would think there is allot of useful and fully functional gear that could be sold and used from these boats?

[sailingdog]

Contact the insurance companies. They can tell you who they sold the salvage rights to. As to whether they are a good deal... it depends. In most cases they will have serious water-related damage, even if the didn't get holed or had the hull seriously damaged. That often means that the interior needs to be re-finished, the electronics and electrical system replaced and the engine often is a total loss. Even if the rigging and hull are sound, that's a substantial investment in time, money and effort to fix.

If you can get the boat for less than the market value minus the cost of those repairs, then it could be a good deal, but I'd think those are generally far and few between. The guys that buy these boats are in it to make money...and re-sell them for more than that as a general rule, or they strip them for parts. The gear on a boat can often be worth more than the boat is as a whole. Winches, windlasses, electronics, etc... can all be taken off and sold. Caveat emptor.

[eherlihy]

Just troll ebay. There are LOTS of huricane damaged boats advertised there. Personally, I would not consider a salvaged boat, or anything (winches, electronics, galley equipment, etc.) taken off one, unless it was designed to be submerged (ground tackle, fenders...)

Ed

[soul searcher]

The thing is not all of them get submerged after hurricane Ivan there were
boats sitting in the street washed up in parks hung up in tree tops. sitting out in the middle of a parking lot, you get the picture.
most of the boats aroud here were sold at auction by boat us. some individuals bought but I think most were bought by wholesalers or scrappers.
Id like to kow how salvage laws work as well there are several boats around here that are hard aground that just appear to be abandoned.
I sow this one coming through the bay the other day and the red one has been there for months.
Shame how people will do this. you dont need to wait for a storm just look around. Im sure there are people who would proud to have these boats and would take better care of them.






Matt

[eherlihy]

OK, I should have been clearer...
Corrected:
"Personally, I would not consider paying for a salvaged boat, or anything taken off one (winches, electronics, galley equipment, etc.), unless it was designed to be submerged (ground tackle, fenders...)"

I beleive that the boats pictured above could be considered "Salvage." I'm not sure of the ins and outs of salvage law, but I beleive that the general idea is: finders keepers. I beleive that maritime salvage laws are constructed to prevent vessels that wash ashore, as pictured above, from littering our coastline.

I'm sure that there is a lot more to it than that though. And, I have every confidence that the crew here will chime in to set me straight

Ed

[cardiacpaul]

here you go...

the salvage operation in N.O. was a policitical boondoggle from the get go. One of the Local D.A's relatives (who LLC'd only a week after katrina) was one of only 2-3 salvage operators permitted to do any work there. BoatUS wasn't pleased with the efforts of these salvagers and complained loudly to authorities, which of course fell on deaf ears.
"Continental Insurance Company, et al. v. Marine Recovery and Salvage, LLC, et al"

I have many surveys that were for boats that were located at "x" location, clearly marked "property of "insert whoever, ins. company, owner, lein holder) only to have them gone "poof" less than 24 hours later. The "salvager" played Sgt. Schultz "I know noth-INK" to the hilt. It wasn't till the Guard showed up that things returned to some sembelence of normalcy.

[cardiacpaul]

oops, forgot the salvage link
http://www.boatus.com/hurricanes/liquidators/

[hellosailor]

It's been discussed at length before.

Yes there are many salvaged boats, and yes in theory you could buy a salvaged boat from any insurer direct. But they don't want to be in the retail junk business, and might not be licensed for that anyway. They sell 'em off in channels to the junk dealers, some of which resell them to the public by auction sites, etc.

While we can suspect the old buddy system is at work, I can also understand the insurance companies' point of view, that they don't want to waste time educating tire kickers, sorting out the potential hazards and claims from retail buyers, etc.

A lot of the boats on auction sites wind up selling for more than they can possibly be worth. That's "auction fever" at work.

[sailingdog]

Winches generally fare fairly well, even if submerged, as they are designed to take on salt spray.... this only really applies to manual winches, rather than power ones... As long as they've been rinsed well, and didn't just sit in salt water for an extended period of time, most should be in pretty good shape.