MCA reiterates new rules regarding marine equipment being UK approved
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has announced that there are no plans to alter a requirement for marine equipment going on board UK vessels to be UK approved. The requirement came into force on January 1 of this year, after a transition period of 2 years, with the maritime industry choosing to depart from the actions of other government departments.
The decision, for all marine equipment going on board UK-flagged vessels to have been awarded a UK mark denoting quality and safety, complies with an International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirement for all safety equipment and counter pollution equipment on ships to be approved by that ship’s flag administration.
The only exceptions are that equipment defined as a ‘spare’ part is still allowed as well as EU-approved equipment manufactured before 1 January 2023, provided they fulfil certain additional criteria.
The new rules will allow the UK to diverge from the EU when necessary, allowing the UK to be more adaptable to the needs of industry while implementing IMO requirements. The UK no longer has a mechanism to feed into the approval or discussion around the implementation of standards within the EU and it was determined that continuing to accept EU approved equipment could risk the UK not meeting its international obligations.
Pete Rollason, Ship Construction and Equipment Lead at the MCA said:
“The UK having its own marine equipment system of approvals means that it will be more able to comply with international requirements as they continue to change and develop and act accordingly. This, by its very nature, is different to how most other product sectors operate.
“Since the UK began implementing its own marine equipment regime, we have been able to comply with IMO implementation dates regarding the implementation of specific standards for some types of marine equipment, while other flag administrations have not met these dates.”
Boating industry in good shape during first half of
2023 says new report Despite getting back to normal and in the face of fierce economic headwinds, the boating industry continues to show signs of resilience and strong consumer demand. That’s the finding of the 2023 Midyear Market Index from Boats Group, which includes a global market analysis of boats sold by length group, location, power versus sail and more. Data sources include
soldboats.com data from Boat Trader, YachtWorld and
boats.com.
The average days on the market have increased for the first time since 2019, indicating a recovery in inventory both domestically and internationally. However, the current time on the market remains significantly lower than observed in 2019, suggesting a sustained level of consumer demand. The average number of days on the market during the first half of 2023 was 187 compared to 261 days in 2019.
While boats are selling more quickly in 2023 than in 2019, the total volume of boats sold was down 9.8% compared to 2019, indicating that inventory supply is still recovering from the 2020-2022 surge. However, recovery is well underway as Boat Trader, YachtWorld and
boats.com have seen a 56% increase in listings YoY.
The overall value of boats globally has remained flat to last year, and not surprisingly, nearly 20% above 2019 values. This further reinforces the health of the boating industry as strong consumer demand continues to drive up value.
Download the report at
https://bit.ly/3DRbsHB.
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