Beware of this Transporter

[j98052]

I've been searching the forums for marine transport experiences and noticed you posted nothing but praise for your move in 2017 under "Experience trucking our boat". What changed? Did you find issues after the move?

Yes, tremendous issues, including bent struts and broken HVAC units. The trucking company's response was 2 words: "F*ck You". Fortunately our insurance company insisted we have transit insurance, which cost $160, so the repairs were covered -- less the deductible and the 12 weeks the boat was in the yard.

 

[mobocracy]

It's almost like there should be a marine transport prep business/industry that owns its own trailers but doesn't actually do any driving. All they do is load and prep the boat for transit so that any contract trucker can haul it (including the idea its been prepped in such a way that it's protected from just any trucker might be pulling it).

I wonder if half these transport problems is that you have flatbed haulers that try to get into the marine business without much marine background. They get enough business in simple jobs where the boat can just be slapped onto a lowboy and maybe shrunk, but not enough business to be competent with with more sophisticated boats.

A marine specialty prep would have deep boat experience and be able to handle the more sophisticated jobs better, including putting it back together right.

 

[Shaps]

Apologies if i read this incorrectly, but in general are those looking to transport their vessel expecting the hauling company to do the boat prep?

I recently hauled my new to me boat from Fla to NJ

Had a boatyard in Fla prep the boat, a wrap company wrap the boat, the hauler haul the boat and the boatyard in NJ unwrap, reassemble and splash the boat.

Prepping the boat included removing all the electronics from the arch and then removing the arch. All wires labeled, all antennas and the arch prepped and stowed for shipping, etc.

Not to say there wasn't stress in this endeavor but all went well in the end.

 

[mobocracy]

Apologies if i read this incorrectly, but in general are those looking to transport their vessel expecting the hauling company to do the boat prep?

I recently hauled my new to me boat from Fla to NJ

Had a boatyard in Fla prep the boat, a wrap company wrap the boat, the hauler haul the boat and the boatyard in NJ unwrap, reassemble and splash the boat.

Not to say there wasn't stress in this endeavor but all went well in the end.

I suspect people are looking for an all-in-one kind of service. A company that preps and actually trucks the boat, as I suspect most people don't have a sophisticated yard that knows how to do this for transport specifically (unless the boat is more or less meant to be trailered generally).

 

[Shaps]

I suspect people are looking for an all-in-one kind of service. A company that preps and actually trucks the boat, as I suspect most people don't have a sophisticated yard that knows how to do this for transport specifically (unless the boat is more or less meant to be trailered generally).

I didn't find such a company.

 

[Shaps]

I suspect people are looking for an all-in-one kind of service. A company that preps and actually trucks the boat, as I suspect most people don't have a sophisticated yard that knows how to do this for transport specifically (unless the boat is more or less meant to be trailered generally).

I don't think that it is realistic to expect that. Proper prep could take a couple of days, same with reassembly. Every day that trailer isn't trailering something, it is costing the hauling company money.
Not to mention the mechanic who would do the aforementioned work or the wrap guy.

 

[j98052]

In our case, we used a company that specialized in boats, and the owner/operator has his own trucks and did the driving, and a lot of the disassembly and reassembly (working with a yard).

There were a couple of issues:
1. He quoted us a fixed price bid that assumed 1 truck. However, some states required he use 2 trucks, which cost him more $
2. The boat came off a small lake in Texas, and their travel lift setup failed. This required him to wet load the boat (which we paid extra for) -- but it took 4 different attempts to get the boat out of the water. Because this was out of state, I was not present for any of this, nor was my broker. This was a mistake. Props were damaged, and who knows what else.
3. He used a boom crane to move the boat from the wet load truck to his truck, and this is where the serious damage occurred. I hired a 3rd party boat yard/boat builder to assess the situation, and their report was clear that the damage resulted from the boom crane.
4. After the boat was re-assembled in Seattle, he left for another job, and had the yard put the boat back in the water. This was a mistake - I should have required that he be present when the work was completed, and have completed a full assessment with both him and the boat yard, and a licensed surveyor.
5. When we interviewed him, I asked him how many claims he'd filed as a result of damage during transit. He said zero. That was the wrong question -- because he flat out refused to file a claim for the damage he caused to our boat and I'm sure it wasn't the first time.

The experience was incredibly stressful and expensive, and we will never truck a boat again. I debated filing a lawsuit against him, because he became a huge asshole once we discovered the damage and refused to work with us. But a friend convinced me that it was time to move on and enjoy the boat.

 

[bbwhitejr]

I did what Shaps did and had a great experience. I found and ex-MM Service Mgr break it down, hauler hauled it, and marina here put it all back together. All wires were unplugged and labeled. All put back together and no issues. There are companies that will do the break down-haul-and put back. I was there every step of the way. I arrived the day before the loading, inspected everything, watched it being loaded, and was here for the unloading. My hauler spent 15 years as part of a crew on a racing sailboat and had a great appreciation for doing things right. Not a scratch was incurred.

I will do the same next time....and use the same hauler.


Bennett

 

[Golfman25]

In our case, we used a company that specialized in boats, and the owner/operator has his own trucks and did the driving, and a lot of the disassembly and reassembly (working with a yard).

There were a couple of issues:
1. He quoted us a fixed price bid that assumed 1 truck. However, some states required he use 2 trucks, which cost him more $
2. The boat came off a small lake in Texas, and their travel lift setup failed. This required him to wet load the boat (which we paid extra for) -- but it took 4 different attempts to get the boat out of the water. Because this was out of state, I was not present for any of this, nor was my broker. This was a mistake. Props were damaged, and who knows what else.
3. He used a boom crane to move the boat from the wet load truck to his truck, and this is where the serious damage occurred. I hired a 3rd party boat yard/boat builder to assess the situation, and their report was clear that the damage resulted from the boom crane.
4. After the boat was re-assembled in Seattle, he left for another job, and had the yard put the boat back in the water. This was a mistake - I should have required that he be present when the work was completed, and have completed a full assessment with both him and the boat yard, and a licensed surveyor.
5. When we interviewed him, I asked him how many claims he'd filed as a result of damage during transit. He said zero. That was the wrong question -- because he flat out refused to file a claim for the damage he caused to our boat and I'm sure it wasn't the first time.

The experience was incredibly stressful and expensive, and we will never truck a boat again. I debated filing a lawsuit against him, because he became a huge asshole once we discovered the damage and refused to work with us. But a friend convinced me that it was time to move on and enjoy the boat.

Sounds like a complete cluster fk. My understanding is it is the yard who is responsible for loading/unloading the boat between the water and the trailer. The fact that the yard's travel lift crapped out is a bad omen.

 

[j98052]

Sounds like a complete cluster fk. My understanding is it is the yard who is responsible for loading/unloading the boat between the water and the trailer. The fact that the yard's travel lift crapped out is a bad omen.

The yard's lift (actually it was the piers) crapped out before escrow closed, and they estimated 2 months to fix it. 3 weeks later they hadn't even started on the work.

 

[Gofirstclass]

We had an overall good experience with dismantling/shipping/recom- missioning when we shipped Beachcomber from Lake St. Clair to Portland, OR.

The smartest thing I did in the whole process was paying for the technician who would be putting her back together to fly to Detroit and spend a few days in a hotel. He did all the disassembly, marked every wire before cutting it so it would be easy to reassemble.

The load broker had told me he'd shipped "several" 550's before and was certain he could put the bridge on the bow of the boat for shipping. Wouldn't work so he had to pay to have a cradle built, a separate pickup and trailer and separate permits. He tried to charge me extra for that but I gently reminded him that I had a signed contract for him to delivery my boat from where it was to Portland, OR., and that a complaint filed with the proper authorities would not look good on his record.

At some point in the shipping the hull of the boat got up against one of those yellow diamond shape signs. That scraped the bottom paint off and put a very thin scrape in the gel coat. That was duly noted by the trucker and the boat yard manager. Someone's insurance paid for a gelcoat repair and an entire new bottom paint.

Also, one of the prop shafts got up against a frame member on the boat. Since it might have bent the shaft, his insurance paid to have both shafts removed and trued up and reinstalled.

So, all things considered I'd say I came out of it pretty well.

 

[b_arrington]

Now I see why my dealer opted to have my boat run on it's own bottom from Virginia to New York instead of trucking it.

 

[northern]

We used to move large skids that were bigger than any boat I have seen. We used one company and the policy was no bid, give us an idea of the cost. No damage, no fines, no PO state or provincial police. Once some one wanted to bid a move. Boss told us about horror moving story. His attitude was never again. I have no idea how one would find a good boat mover other than by reputation supplied by many happy customers. Price will always be more for the best.

 

[Bajarat]

I did what Shaps did and had a great experience. I found and ex-MM Service Mgr break it down, hauler hauled it, and marina here put it all back together. All wires were unplugged and labeled. All put back together and no issues. There are companies that will do the break down-haul-and put back. I was there every step of the way. I arrived the day before the loading, inspected everything, watched it being loaded, and was here for the unloading. My hauler spent 15 years as part of a crew on a racing sailboat and had a great appreciation for doing things right. Not a scratch was incurred.

I will do the same next time....and use the same hauler.


Bennett

Bennett

Can you please forward the contact for the Marine Max Srvc Mgr and the transport company?

Thanks!

 

[bbwhitejr]

PM sent

 

[douglee25]

In our case, we used a company that specialized in boats, and the owner/operator has his own trucks and did the driving, and a lot of the disassembly and reassembly (working with a yard).

There were a couple of issues:
1. He quoted us a fixed price bid that assumed 1 truck. However, some states required he use 2 trucks, which cost him more $
2. The boat came off a small lake in Texas, and their travel lift setup failed. This required him to wet load the boat (which we paid extra for) -- but it took 4 different attempts to get the boat out of the water. Because this was out of state, I was not present for any of this, nor was my broker. This was a mistake. Props were damaged, and who knows what else.
3. He used a boom crane to move the boat from the wet load truck to his truck, and this is where the serious damage occurred. I hired a 3rd party boat yard/boat builder to assess the situation, and their report was clear that the damage resulted from the boom crane.
4. After the boat was re-assembled in Seattle, he left for another job, and had the yard put the boat back in the water. This was a mistake - I should have required that he be present when the work was completed, and have completed a full assessment with both him and the boat yard, and a licensed surveyor.
5. When we interviewed him, I asked him how many claims he'd filed as a result of damage during transit. He said zero. That was the wrong question -- because he flat out refused to file a claim for the damage he caused to our boat and I'm sure it wasn't the first time.

The experience was incredibly stressful and expensive, and we will never truck a boat again. I debated filing a lawsuit against him, because he became a huge asshole once we discovered the damage and refused to work with us. But a friend convinced me that it was time to move on and enjoy the boat.

I know this is kind of old, but the thread was bumped. Inquiring minds want to know! Assuming you received copies of the hauler's insurance before you signed on with him, correct? If you had damage at that point, there's no sense in arguing with the driver, just go direct to his insurance company and let them sort it out.

 

[j98052]

I know this is kind of old, but the thread was bumped. Inquiring minds want to know! Assuming you received copies of the hauler's insurance before you signed on with him, correct? If you had damage at that point, there's no sense in arguing with the driver, just go direct to his insurance company and let them sort it out.

We were not able to file the claim directly, only the company could file the claim. And even if we did, they would have disputed it. Dishonest, disreputable, etc.

 

[douglee25]

Thanks.