Buying a new boat can be very exciting, but there’s a lot of pressure on your part to get the best deal possible on your vessel. In this day and age, a boat is no minor investment, and the used market has really expanded, with a broad range of dealers and private sellers available to prospective buyers. If you plan on purchasing a pre-owned boat, it’s important to do your homework—you want to be sure that your vessel is structurally sound, as well as free from any possible liens. The most thorough way for you to get this information on a vessel is performing a USCG documentation search.
Know Where You Need to Start
It’s a fact that not every boat requires USCG documentation, but a lot of owners will document their recreational vessels because it can greatly help in securing financing. Documentation also offers significant ease of travel for vessel owners, so it’s commonly acquired for this purpose. The USCG, for their part, maintains a registry of all documented vessels in the United States, and they grant you the ability to search out said vessels. What you need to do to get this information is head over to the USCG website and follow their instructions on performing a search. You’ll want to have some information handy—mainly the vessel name and documentation number—in order to find your desired information.
What Information Can You Find Out?
By performing a USCG documentation search, you can learn the detailed ownership background of the boat you’re looking at. You’ll also be able to find out if there are any outstanding liens that are against the vessel. This information can be crucial, as any liens on the boat could end up being your responsibility once ownership has been transferred to you. The last thing you want are thousands of dollars in liens against your newly purchased boat, so it’s in your best interests to do this simple search.
What to Do Once You’ve Made Your Purchase
After you’ve done your USCG documentation search on the boat you’re looking at, and you’ve decided to go through with the purchase, you might want to have the vessel’s documentation transferred to you. At U.S. Vessel Documentation Center Online, we can assist with this process, ensuring an easy and thorough transition. Take a minute to explore our website and see what types of services we can offer to you.
