Reply All,
The boat was in fact very well prepared for transport. What was I to do with a
100 pound outboard engine, put it in the cockpit or on the deck? If I had put the
engine inside the boat (there was no room anyways for it), or in the cockpit, the
damage would have been a lot worse.
Amazing how people jump to the defense of this poor trucker.
Am I supposed to be grateful that they didn't total my boat. Some of these trucking
companies go under the assumption that you have to expect some damage. I don't
buy that. If I were a large company shipping my 500000 dollar yacht, you can be sure
they would have taken care of any damage. This cowboy trucker was probably
driving too close to the vehicle ahead, or fell asleep at the wheel. They are only supposed
to drive 8 hours a day, but he made the trip in just over 1 1/2 days, as the
only driver. Well, if nobody complains, these companies will continue their bad
practices. Seems like nobody cares, and thank goodness, I don't plan any future
transports.
The trucker has insurance and I am covered also by my yacht policy, but making a claim
for $150 hardly seems worth it. I was not able to see the damage immediately, as the boat
was on the travel lift in the air being just taken off the truck. I was being a nice guy about not

keeping the trucker waiting until the boat could be lowered onto the ground. The driver told
me that if I missed anything, they would take care of it.
I spent three days in Florida preparing the boat for transport, and everything was securely
tied down. If the truck made a panic stop, no amount of securing would have kept everything
in place. The money isn't important, but these people have the nerve to tell me that the boat
was in the same condition at arrival, as when it was picked up. I sent them photographs of the
cracked bracket, but they obviously ignored them. These people have no right to be in business.

Sherwin D.




Butch Davis wrote:

Generally shipping damage must be noted on the BOL to be reimbursed.
Insurance companies often demand this. You did insure your shipment????

Butch
"sherwindu" wrote in message
...
Recently shipped my sailboat from Florida to Racine Wisconsin using
American Boat Transport.
When boat arrived, mast on deck had shifted foward about 2 feet, although
it was secured well
in three places. Driver says he noticed shift while driving down the
highway. More like he had
to do a panic stop. Everything inside the boat was tossed about. Hanging
nets came down, etc.
Only after the driver left Racine did I notice the outboard bracket was
cracked, and luckily the
engine did not fall off the boat. American Boat refuses to accept
responsibility for this, or pay
for
a new bracket. There are many reputable boat transporters. I just picked
a bad one.

Sherwin D.