getting a homebuilt registered

[Thin water]

Thank you IKE, this whole thread may have saved me a bunch of trouble (and seizure of my boat). I hate laws that are not clearly spelled out and seem to contradict themselves. I have been to several suppression hearings on things that were much less ambiguous than this and it still took several hours for the attorneys to argue it. I guess we can call it a done deal, attach your HIN.

[SheetWise]

Thin water -

Wait until you what these geniuses can come up with after they establish a "Disambiguation Committee" ...

[JR-Shine]

In the mean time (while the argument over verbiage goes on) build the boat

In FL, you take your receipts to the tax office - you pay taxes on thing that you may no have payed sales tax for. You register it there and you done (if its under 16'). If its over 16' you have to take it by the DNR office and they "inspect" this is mainly to insure you are not trying to re-register a stolen boat.

In this state there are thousands of custom built boats, none of which were sunk by the USCG for testing.

Build one

[etinthekeys]

There are numerous posts above citing very inaccurate info on titling home built boats in Florida. First, let’s get it straight that registration and titling of a boat in Florida is a state issue, not a federal issue. Coast Guard is a Federal agency. FWC (Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission) is a state agency.

The US Coast Guard has absolutely NOTHING to do with registration or titles of boats in Florida....EVER. There is NO USCG inspection required to title the boat as home built. While it’s true that The US Coast Guard does often inspect vessels for safety gear, it’s AFTER it's it has been registered and titled and in the water. The inspection for safety equipment is routine and just the same as they would any boat that they encounter on the water. They don't inspect your vessel just because it's home built and there’s no reason for them too.

The ONLY way to title a boat as home built in Florida is by completing two forms and having an FWC officer come to your location to your boat to perform an inspection (more of verification). The two forms are HSMV 82040 Application for title, which only you fill out and form HSMV 87002 Vessel Statement of Builder, which you fill out and the FWC officer signs and stamps once he's satisfied that you’ve met the requirements. You MUST have receipts (the more the better), photos of the build (the more the better), and he will look over the vessel. If you didn’t take photos while you were building you will probably still be able to convince him and he will probably be able to observe that it is in fact home built. It just helps to have photos. He does NOT perform a safety inspection. This is a verification that the boat is homebuilt and that it is not a factory boat being passed on as home built or a stolen boat being passed on as home built boat. If ANY part of the hull is from a factory boat, it will NOT pass the criteria for home built and will not be titled as home built.

Note that only home built boats 16 feet and above need the FWC inspection. You still however use both of the above forms. You just don’t need the FWC signoff if it’s under 16 feet. You still need receipts. Bring both forms and receipts to DMV. You will not need photos of the boat. You will not pay sales tax as the receipts also serve the purpose of proving that you already paid the tax as well as provign home built.

Once the FWC inspection is completed, he signs off on the paperwork you go to your local DMV. You will leave with new registration, and assigned HIN (which does NOT have to be displayed), and your new title will come in the mail in a week or so.

Trying to pass a factory built boat as a home build is illegal. Unfortunately I've seen many ads for boats and jet skis for sale where the seller states that he has no title but that "It's easy to get a lost title or register as home built". Both are untrue and it's a shame that people purchase vessels and end up stuck with them unable to use them "legally".

[Ike]

Right on. Good post.

[mydauphin]

Originally Posted by Ike

Thin water: I spent twenty years administering this law. I assure you, you are reading it wrong. However as we used to say at CGHQ, if you can read the regs and correctly understand them, You're Hired! LOL

All vessels made after 1972 have to have an HIN. Hulls made before don't under the Fed Regs, BUT, all the states assign them anyway. If you want the final word on this call or e-mail Rick Gipe at USCG HQ Office of Boating Safety rgipe@comdt.uscg.mil or 202-267-0985. In any case a boat with an HIN must have the HIN permanently affixed to upper right corner of the transom unless the boat doesn't have a transom, like a canoe or boat with a round stern, then it has to be as far aft on the right (starboard) side as possible.

I believe on larger boats, HIN is in Keel, not transon.

[troy2000]

I just registered a homebuilt 16' flat bottomed canoe in California. Here, the law is very clear: hand-powered boats are exempt from registration requirements period, no matter what the size. Any boat that is powered needs to be registered, as does any boat over 8' LOA with a sail. I registered mine so I could put an outboard on it, and it was a simple task.

I took the boat with me in case they wanted to see it, and found no inspection was necessary; they accepted the information on the signed application as an affidavit. For calculation of use tax, they wanted to know how much was paid for the boat, or how much was spent in materials. They took my unsupported word that I spent $150.00, without asking for receipts.

I gave them $29.00. They gave me a title with a hull ID number that needs to be affixed or carved into the the transom and one other place; a CF number that needs to be displayed on both sides of the bow; and two registration stickers to display with the CF number. End of problem....

[Ike]

I believe on larger boats, HIN is in Keel, not transon.

I wish I knew where you got that idea. Not so. Federal law in the US, Canada, and the RCD in Europe all specify where the HIN goes

from 33 CFR.
Sec. 181.29 Hull identification number display. Two identical hull identification numbers are required to be displayed on each boat hull.

(a) The primary hull identification number must be affixed—

(1) On boats with transoms, to the starboard outboard side of the transom within two inches of the top of the[[Page 694]]transom, gunwale, or hull/deck joint, whichever is lowest.

(2) On boats without transoms or on boats on which it would be impractical to use the transom, to the starboard outboard side of the hull, aft, within one foot of the stern and within two inches of the top of the hull side, gunwale or hull/deck joint, whichever is lowest.

(3) On catamarans and pontoon boats which have readily replaceable hulls, to the aft crossbeam within one foot of the starboard hull attachment.

(4) If the hull identification number would not be visible, because of rails, fittings, or other accessories, the number must be affixed as near as possible to the location specified in paragraph (a) of this section.

(b) The duplicate hull identification number must be affixed in an unexposed location on the interior of the boat or beneath a fitting or item of hardware.

(c) Each hull identification number must be carved, burned, stamped, embossed, molded, bonded, or otherwise permanently affixed to the boat so that alteration, removal, or replacement would be obvious. If the number is on a separate plate, the plate must be fastened in such a manner that its removal would normally cause some scarring of or damage to the surrounding hull area. A hull identification number must not be attached to parts of the boat that are removable.

(d) The characters of each hull identification number must be no less than one-fourth of an inch high.


You may be thinking of the Document number on large vessels which may be carved into the keel. The law says mainbeam but most boats don't have a mainbeam anymore.

[PAR]

I'm not sure what has caused this thread to be dragged back up, but registration isn't especially difficult in Florida and in most states. Yes, there's some dis-information, there always is from those that don't know, but few phone calls or web sites later most find out what they need.

Ike is correct, the serial number for a federally registered vessel should be on a "main beam" which most often is a cast in portion of a deck beam, bulkhead or other fairly obvious location. It should be readily visible for inspection, but it's also recommended that a second location, not so easily seen be also incorporated, for security purposes.

Most manufactures have been doing this for a long time (many decades, not just since 1973) in regard to their own serial numbers.

[mydauphin]

Yeah, sorry got HIN mixed up with Documentation number. I just realized my boat doesn't have a HIN or any I can find... Go to fix that...

[Highland]

About 13 yrs ago I purchased an incomplets hull,To obtain Fl title I used a marine bill of sale Fl Title app and a inspection was required from the Fl marine patrol.Seems odd for that dept but after the inspection and his signature all was esay.

[PAR]

In states like Florida, this sort of thing is fairly easy, as they see it frequently enough to have a reasonable system in place. Most coastal states are like this, but if you try it in West Virgina (for example) you'll probably have a more difficult time of it.