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Boat sample letters: deposit, yard bill, berth, marina invoice, defects
Charter deposit still not refunded, a yard bill far above the quote, a berth you want to give up: these five boat sample letters cover the disputes owners run into most. Pick a letter, fill in your details and watch it take shape below, ready to print or to paste into an email.
Many readers write to yards, marinas and charter companies in Germany, so every letter is available in German as well as in English. Printed on A4, the address fits the window of a standard DL envelope.
Choose and fill in your letter
Anything you leave blank appears in square brackets in the letter, so you can see at a glance what is still missing.
Your letter
Nothing is sent. The letter is built only in your browser; your details never leave this page and are not stored.
Only the letter is printed, on A4. Sign by hand above your name.
Make sure your letter can be proven
A letter only helps if you can later show that it arrived. Send it by a tracked or recorded service and keep the receipt. Email is faster, but then you need the recipient to confirm they have received it.
Keep a dated copy and every document you rely on: the contract, the invoice, the quote, the check out report, photos. Always give a fixed date as a deadline. A reply or a bank transfer needs less time than a repair the yard first has to schedule.
When to get legal advice
If a lot of money is involved, or the other side ignores your deadline or rejects everything, get advice from a lawyer in the country where the contract was made. Check first whether you have legal expenses insurance that covers boating disputes. Within the EU, the European Consumer Centres help free of charge with disputes against businesses in another member state.
What you can claim if a boat turns out to be faulty is explained on our page defects after buying a boat.
