Maritime Law - who is liable for my deceased father's boat?!

[telllaura]

This is incredibly niche - so niche that I am struggling to find anyone irl who can answer it, so here's hoping....

My father died in France, where he was domiciled. He was a British Citizen. As his children we have never had a relationship with him, his friends or family.

His British estate went directly to his sister, named in his British will. French laws of succession means his French estate will be split between his estranged children and his sister.

A gentleman has come out of the woodwork to say he co-owned a boat with my father and wants to buy my father's share from the French estate but that the estate is liable for mooring costs and taxes. The boat is moored in Greece but is and always has been UK registered.

I believe that as the boat is UK registered, my aunt, as the sole inheritor of his British estate should be dealing with this and that his French estate should not be involved.

Any ideas? I have spoken to other lawyers who are not very sure on this issue.

What a brilliant question! I have no idea the answer (sorry) but I would think the boat could be registered in England whilst also being part of the assets belonging to the French estate. Presumably your father has paid mooring costs and taxes before? If so can you find out which system (French or English) he went through to pay mooring fees and taxes that might help?

That is an excellent thought - so did he pay through a UK or a French bank account in order to make those payments? The only person we will be able to get the information from is the man he co-owned the boat with, shall pursue. Thank you for responding to this highly niche request!

Did he buy the boat under British law paying VAT?

I'd contact someone like Camper and Nicholson who sell worldwide

https://camperandnicholsons.com

Who was it insured with? They'd probably have a good idea of how to proceed.

Is it definitely co-owned? Is there paperwork?
Assuming it's definitely co-owned, and not someone trying their luck, I would assume both owners paid a contribution to insurance and mooring costs?
If you don't have concrete evidence of dual ownership, I think I'd be very careful about asking a stranger questions about an asset. (Appreciate I'm cynical!).

There are law firms that specialise in shipping and maritime law. The big ones will have offices worldwide, such as Hill Dickinson LLP, MFB Solicitors etc.

Very interesting question, my partner is ex navy and he thinks UK if it is UK registered and UK flagged (he is not a lawyer just knows a lot about boats so could be wrong).

maybe Ince? They certainly used to have offices in England and France, and did lots of shipping etc, when I was studying law.

I would look for the address it was insured at, which bank account paid fees .. . Perhaps also investigate the fees owed vs what the co owner is willing to pay, they might cancel each other out

Mooring costs can be expensive. Is the boat worth much? If not, and he has paperwork to prove his Co ownership, I would be careful agreeing to pay for anything (assuming it turns out it's your responsibility anyway!) you might be better off to tell him he can have it in lieu of the payments.

ETA the bit in brackets!

It has to be registered somewhere and insured. That’s where you need to start.

Thank you so much - this is incredibly helpful. Do all boats have to be insured? I am a complete novice here in an unprecedented circumstance. We are being very cautious and being supported by a lawyer, but not a maritime one!

I can help @telllaura

The owners are those registered owners at the UK shop registry, unless there is very strong evidence to the contrary to displace it.

What you need is a transcript for the vessel. These cost less than £30 and you get them from UKSR. It’s a snapshot of vessel details, information about the vessel, owners and any registered mortgage.

Depending on the vessel size, it’s unlikely anyone paid VAT.

otherwise this is a jurisdiction point about the executors, not really maritime law.

*ship registry not shop obviously

Oh - having said that this is about the executorship, you should watch out for liens. It’s likely that the berth dues/mooring will give the marina some kind of lien over the vessel. This could potentially include power of sale.

We have been provided with a document by the gentleman which shows him and my father named as the owners of the boat but no other details - he claims, under further pressing, that they bought it on eBay fgs.

What’s the document and who issued it and when is it dated?

Just because they owned the boat together in 2004 doesn’t mean they owned it together at the time of death.

The maritime and coastguard UK reg certificate, valid till 2026, in both names.

Well, that’s a good start from him. But you do still need to get a transcript. A lot can happened between obtaining the Certificate of Registration (which I think is the document you hold) and now.

He could have sold his share to your father. They could have mortgaged it. They could have taken on a third owner etc. You need a time/date stamped document.

However, that said - prepare yourself for joint ownership.

You should see what the purchase arrangements are between him and your DF - request that he sends you a copy of the documentation. Also, get a copy of the berthing arrangements to see if he is liable. It’s not clear why your DF (or his estate) would have sole liability for the mooring arrangements, unless he had sole enjoyment of the vessel.

This is exactly what we have been angling for but he needs evidence of French probate (he claims) in order to transfer ownership - British probate has been granted already so he could get it much more quickly (and without us needing to be involved) if he pursues that avenue.

He has trusted my father to sign the papers to transfer the boat to EU registration - he hadn't done this so he thinks he will be subject to a fine - he wants us to be liable for half the cost of the fine so won't accept what you suggest until he knows what the fees are. He seems a tricky chap to deal with.

How valuable is the boat? If not worth a lot it may be best to offer to give the boat to the other man if he agrees to take on any outstanding debts. It will make the problem go away as otherwise it sounds like you are opening a can of legal worms which could get expensive.

It's in Greece which complicates matters further. I wish you luck.

Why does the co-owner think the boat needed to be transferred to European registration? We had a boat in Spain and as a result of Brexit it had to be declared as UK or non-Uk for tax paid purposes. But the presumption was it was where it was located on a set date - sorry can’t remember what it was. But it made no difference to anything unless you wanted to bring it back to the U.K. in which case you would be charged VAT if it wasn’t recorded as U.K. VAT paid. But none of this is relevant to your situation I think.