Please review this work sheet to help us make your boat moving experience a pleasant one.
Moving large boats is like moving your home; there is a lot of preparation, packing and rearranging to be done and it all cannot be done the day of the move. Professional boat haulers hailing from Texas have to comply with USDOT and TXDOT rules and regulations which are in place for the safety of all.
Boats loaded on the trailer should be 13’ 6” or lower and 14’ wide or less or they have to be permitted. Special permits are issued and we are routed under low bridges and around road construction. Note that this can dramatically affect the number of miles and the time it takes to commute between point A and point B. Also note that different states and cities have their own rules and regulations for when oversized loads may be moved and how many escorts are required. Sun down, holidays, rush hour traffic, divisible loads and police escorts are all regulated. Any unscheduled delay can sometimes mean the difference of 3 or more days in a delivery schedule. Because of the extremely hazardous nature of this job, we ask that you do your part in making sure your vessel is ready for us to do our work when our crew arrives and that the overall height is brought down as low as possible.
Items that you are responsible for are household goods, deck furniture, grills and cooking equipment, dock boxes, fishing gear, decorative lighting, lifebuoys, bumpers, lines, rigging, anchors and miscellaneous personal items and boating items that are on the deck or the exterior of the boat. All interior items must be secured safely in the cabin.
Laced canvasses, exterior zippered curtains and awnings that exceed the 13’ 6” height when on a trailer and/or that might get damaged or cause damage to your boat or that might be hazardous to traffic if they should blow off, must be removed and safely stowed before we arrive. You may arrange to have your boat shrink wrapped for protection from road dirt. However, shrink wraps do occasionally rip apart in transit and have to be removed for safety reasons. If you arrange for shrink wrapping, please arrange for the removal and disposal of it upon arrival.
Fuels, water and septic must be removed from tanks before we arrive. Any water in the hull must be bilged out also. Winterizing is a service we can provide upon request. Batteries must be disconnected and secured. Dinghies must be removed from davits and secured. Hatches must be latched or taped shut.
While we do quote on a turnkey job that includes flybridge removal and the removal of other specified items, Sea Horse Boat Transport, LLC cannot de-rig and rig to the same standards as a factory installation. We encourage you to find your own contract help to de-rig and rig whenever possible. We cannot be responsible for stripped screws, frozen bolts, rusted metal, decomposed fiberglass, and paint chipping etc. that are always resultant from vessels that have been sitting exposed to weather while on the water.Additional fees may be incurred if defective parts postpone the process beyond a reasonable amount of time.
We do promise to make every effort to handle your equipment as if it was our own, however, any time a vessel is loaded on a trailer, there are risks and there is exposure to certain hazards that are inevitable. For example, all boats have to be secured with strapping. We take precautions that these straps will be held off from the boat by padding them. Some boat finishes will not show any sign of rub, other finishes might, depending on the quality of the finish. We cannot be responsible for small rubs or for paint that comes off, especially if it is already weathered. Old wooden boats, rusty metal boats, decomposing fiberglass boats or boats that have had underwater wear and tear are very susceptible to being damaged when they are loaded on a trailer and Sea Horse Boat Transport, LLC cannot be responsible if a hull is compromised in the moving process.
Please choose an accessible location to load and unload your boat. Permits do not take into account low tree branches, wires, cables, awnings, acute bends in the roads or the overall length of our trailers. It seems that most marinas offer some of these challenges and it is an occupational hazard to deal with them. However, Sea Horse Boat Transport, LLC cannot be responsible for damage incurred when trying to accommodate your needs if we have to negotiate compromising road conditions. Also, lake levels fluctuate and boat ramps can hold hidden dangers such as silt, pot holes, erosion, debris and sometimes large rocks.
Legally we are not allowed to leave with your vessel until a bill-of-lading has been signed and so it is imperative a representative be on hand at the time of departure. Payment in full is required before the boat is launched. Please have cash, cashiers check or direct deposit ready when your boat arrives.
