Buying a boat abroad

[Ohgreatone]

I've seen a boat in Spain that I am keen to buy, planning to view it as soon as covid allows and no hotel quarantining on return.

Does any one have experience of buying abroad It is from a bona fide  marine broker.

It doesn't come with a trailer so I'd have purchase one, and that would be a whole new ball game as well.

The romantic in me says have a 6 month holiday and "sail" it back but it would be rather expensive and end up being a bit samey.

And then I have to think about mooring etc. I live midway between Poole and Weymouth so all options are open, ie pontoon, swing, drystack, over wintering on my drive etc

The boat is a lema gen type of boat, a hybrid leisure/fisher, which keeps "er indoors" happy, its about 22ft by 8ft, and with removable seating in the back converts to a decent fisher

[Rob]

Ian Jones picked up a Rodman from Bordeaux recently.

Worth sending him a PM.

R

[Andy135]

One option may be to find a haulage company to bring it back on a low-loader. Certainly less stressful than driving all the way down to Spain and trailing it back yourself, and once you factor out your own time, fuel and selling on the trailer at the UK end, a haulier may be a worthwhile investment. The broker will likely have experience of hauliers collecting/delivering boats and may be able to recommend one for you.

[Tarlach.]

One option may be to find a haulage company to bring it back on a low-loader. Certainly less stressful than driving all the way down to Spain and trailing it back yourself, and once you factor out your own time, fuel and selling on the trailer at the UK end, a haulier may be a worthwhile investment. The broker will likely have experience of hauliers collecting/delivering boats and may be able to recommend one for you.

Ideally find a haulier that is delivering a boat to Spain or France. This way you won’t have to cover the costs of the outbound journey


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[Andy135]

37 minutes ago, Tarlach. said:

Ideally find a haulier that is delivering a boat to Spain or France. This way you won’t have to cover the costs of the outbound journey


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Yes, that's the ideal outcome, but what are the chances of finding one in the right place at just the right time? Safer to budget for both journeys and if they find a way to split the cost with another delivery then so much the better.

[Ian.Jones]

As Rob mentioned, I bought my last boat in France, and before that I have bought another in Spain. 

 

My thoughts would be:

 

Buying in Europe is very straightforward and the paperwork is simple - generally there is less expectation of a paperwork trail tracking all the way back to the original owner. Brokers rely more on a legal statement of ownership as a binding contract base, which should be ok with an established broker - BUT be careful if you then bring the boat back to the UK as when you sell it you may be expected to have more comprehensive paperwork.

 

You will have to pay VAT on the value of the boat when you import it into the UK (a Brexit bonus!) which will also include transport costs. This needs to be accounted for in your budget.

 

Road transport costs are almost certainly going to be higher than you think. You could be lucky and find a boat transport company looking for a return load, but it would still be in the thousands of pounds. Driving the boat back is viable, but the fuel cost and wear and tear needs to be budgeted.

 

On a boat of the size you are looking at, I think the deal would have to be exceptional to justify the extra cost and inconvenience, especially when you add on flights, hotels and car hire to check the boat and then collect it if you decided to go ahead.

 

Sorry if this is talking you out of it - but better to know what you are taking on beforehand.

 

I drove my Rodman from Bordeaux to Chichester, then to Holland and shipped it New Zealand, where it now sits waiting for Covid rules to lift. That was a much bigger project, but I knew the full costs before I started and it was worth it.

 

I hope that helps, but PM me if you want more detailed advice.

 

Ian

 

 

 

 

[Jim]

Very good advice for anyone going down that route.

 

[Ohgreatone]

Excellent advice, many thanks.

Does the VAT apply to second hand boats, and if so what is the rate?

That will probably blow it out of the water if it's too high

[Andy135]

1 minute ago, Ohgreatone said:

Excellent advice, many thanks.

Does the VAT apply to second hand boats, and if so what is the rate?

That will probably blow it out of the water if it's too high

 

Afraid the VAT does apply for second hand boats. I had to pay the VAT (usual rate) when I bought mine in Jersey.

[Maverick Martin]

Same for me, my boat came from Jersey and was subject to the vat @ 20%