Within the contents of this page you will find news (as current as we can be) relevant to the squadron and its members.
Current News:
The Recreational Vessel Courtesy Check (RVCC) Program
(Posted 2010-04-08)The Recreational Vessel Courtesy Check (RVCC) program is as its title implies, a "Courtesy Check". There absolutely no "enforcement" aspect to the check, your vessel is not identified on the form, and a copy is sent directly to Transport Canada for statistical purposes only.
The current RVCC is new this year and replaces the courtesy checks you may be familiar with in past years, often performed by the Coast Guard Auxiliary or the Halton Marine Unit (amongst others.)
What we do:
The "Inspector" is invited aboard at the dock and we review the safety equipment carried on board for compliance with respect to the Office of Boating Safety's Safe Boating Guide. If the vessel is in compliance, we issue a sticker that indicates that the vessel complied when inspected.
What we don't do:
Fix it.... We are permitted to advise you where your boat may not comply but we are not permitted to tell you how to fix it.
Some corrections will be obvious. If you are required to carry 6 current flares of types A, B, or C, and you have 2 current flares and 2 outdated ones. You should be able to infer that you need to buy 4 new current flares to be in compliance.
If, on the other hand, you are required to carry navigation lights and when you flip the switch, they don't work, we are not permitted to advise you how to fix it. Even if it is as simple as replacing a fuse, that fuse may have blown for a reason that we aren't looking for - a short circuit somewhere in the wiring perhaps. If that short circuit overheated and started a fire based on our advise we could be held liable - we are not professional marine electricians.
As far fetched as this sounds, Transport Canada will not let us go there. Your lights work or they don't... Check the appropriate box. If you change the fuse and they work - We check the box indicating compliance....
What the program does:
Provided your vessel is found in compliance, you will receive a numbered an dated sticker that indicates that your vessel has been inspected and found to be in compliance with respect to the safety equipment required in the Safe Boating Guide. (If anything is found not to be in compliance, you can correct it and we will recheck it for the non-compliances.)
What the program does not do:
It does not replace a proper marine survey. We are only looking at mandatory safety equipment - not the vessel as a whole.
It does not replace any mandatory vessel checks that law enforcement may require in their on the water spot checks. (Seeing the sticker on your boat may cause them to pass you by and check the next boat that does not have a sticker displayed.)
It does not make the boat safe. It complied with the standard when the sticker was issued. It is up to you to keep the equipment in "good maintenance".
It does not replace common sense.
How to arrange a Courtesy Check - Burlington Squadron has 2 trained volunteers based in Bronte (Yacht Club and Outer Harbour Marina) and in Hamilton (Harbour West and the RHYC) but there are others covering other area marinas and yacht clubs. Contact us through the
Squadron E-mail Address with "RVCC" and your location in the subject line and we will put a volunteer in touch with you regardless of where you keep your boat - including on the trailer in your driveway. (There may be a delay as our kits are "in the mail".)
