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Terms and conditions
Short-Term Licence Terms and Conditions

Short-Term Licence Terms and Conditions

Transit & Short-Term Visitor Licences Terms and Conditions 

All fees include VAT, overnight berthing at visitor moorings, the licence fee for the Waterway and use of the sea locks unless otherwise indicated. 

  • Prices include VAT at 20% which may be subject to change by Government.
  • A wide-beam surcharge of 10% may be applied April - Sept for vessels on the Caledonian Canal whose beam exceeds half their LOA.
  • A maximum of two 30 Day Licences or equivalent duration of visitor licences may be purchased for any specific vessel in a single calendar year.

Summary of Conditions 

  • You must display the licence so that it is easily visible by our people on the bank or at locks. 
  • The licence is not refundable and not transferable between craft. 
  • The licence does not permit use of the Boat for carrying goods, or as a tug or other workboat or for any business purpose without our permission. 
  • The licence does not allow you to moor except for short periods ancillary to cruising. You must have somewhere to keep the Boat when it is not being used for cruising. 
  • You agree to comply with navigation rules, relevant Acts, Byelaws and regulations, and to follow any of our lawful directions, spoken or written (including signs). 
  • You agree to be responsible for any damage or difficulty caused by you or the Boat because of anything you have carelessly done or not done. 
  • Once the licence has ended, unless you re-license the Boat, you must remove it from our waters. If you do not, we have powers to remove it ourselves and to charge you for the costs we incur in doing this. 
  • Waterways are occasionally closed for repairs or due to emergencies. We will not rebate licence fees in respect of such closures. 
  • The licence does not allow you to tow the Boat by animal or vehicle. You need our written permission to do this.

Insurance

Your vessel must have insurance that covers at least two million pounds third party liabilities and must cover costs of recovery if your vessel takes on water or sinks. Proof of this must be provided on arrival.

Boat Safety

If you plan to spend more than 30 days on our waterways, your boat must have a Boat Safety Certificate or a Declaration of Conformity with the EU’s Recreational Craft Directive. Your boat should comply with our safety requirements, we reserve the right to refuse access onto our Waterways for any boat that we think may present a safety risk to other users, staff, or the Waterway.   

Personal Safety

Please ensure that there is always sufficient competent crew to minimise risks to your own and other people’s safety. Buy a copy of our Skipper’s Guide, or free to download from www.scottishcanals.co.uk and check for local information about the Waterways you plan to use.

Navigation Rules 

 

  • The Boat licence does not give you any priority of passage on any Waterway. You must follow the directions of our local people who may decide which boats have priority. 
  • You must ensure that when the Boat is under way, there is always an adequate and competent crew in attendance. A copy of our Skipper’s Guide should be kept on board the Boat and drawn to the attention of all crew members and passengers.
  • You are responsible for assessing whether it is safe to use the Waterway in flood or strong stream conditions. Our Waterway offices will provide information. 
  • You must share locks-up to their capacity. There is no right to the exclusive use of a lock. 

You must not: 

 

  • use any electricity generator, including the boat’s engine, at any Scottish Canals’ mooring between 8pm and 7am, unless you are moored in isolation, out of earshot of other people. We do not intend this Condition to stop you moving the Boat from the mooring. 
  • run the Boat’s engine in gear when it is moored as this can damage the waterway walls and cause a nuisance to other people. 
  • do anything at any mooring which will cause damage or nuisance to any other person or their property. 
  • discharge anything into the Waterway from the Boat except unpolluted surface water that drains naturally or water from sinks or showers on board the Boat. 
  • obstruct the towpath or use our land for storing items from your Boat. 
  • take a vehicle onto our towpaths or land or park on them unless we have already given our permission. 

There is no general restriction on the use of locks by portable and unpowered craft. However, in the interest of safety and to conserve water, specific local restrictions may apply. We encourage users to carry these craft around locks if possible. If it is not possible, we recommend using ropes to pass the Boat through the lock. It is preferable that there is nobody on board the boat while it is in the lock. Local Scottish Canals instructions must always be followed. 

  • Normal licence fees apply to portable and unpowered craft using locks. 

Unpowered craft may not navigate certain tunnels. Please check locally for advice or ask us for the national list of tunnels. 

Where you are permitted to navigate, we encourage the following precautions: 

  • navigate in groups of between three and six craft, at least one of which must be navigated by an experienced person. 
  • everyone should be able to swim, should wear a life jacket, and have a waterproof torch and whistle attached to them. 
  • the craft must have adequate buoyancy. 
  • you must display a securely fixed, bright white light showing forward. 

 

You must not crane a boat into or out of any waterway without our written permission, other than at a boatyard with appropriate facilities. This is to ensure compliance with the relevant lifting regulations and to ensure the safety of other waterway users.

You must stay within the speed limit of 5mph on the canals and not create a breaking wave that damages the banks. 

 

Visitor mooring information 

Scottish Canals visitor moorings are free of charge and available for short term use only – a maximum of 24 hours on the Lowland canals. Visitor moorings are available subject to the advertised mooring site restrictions. 

Visitor moorings at Seaport Marina, Inverness are available free of charge for the first night (one free night per licence) then £15.00 per finger, £25.00 per hammerhead, and £35 per wharf / large craft pontoon 7, per night thereafter. 

Short Term licence holders are reminded that Bellanoch Pontoons, on the Crinan Canal, are reserved for long term berth holders and must not be used by visiting craft.

 

Waterway Facilities 

We provide a range of basic services for boaters, including water points, refuse disposal, pump outs, toilets, and showers throughout the Waterway network. Elsan emptying points are available on the Lowlands and Caledonian Canals. These are generally free to licence holders. 

Access to sanitary facilities is by special Yale key on the Caledonian and Lowland Canals, available from sea locks and waterway offices (£15.00 charge on the Lowlands Canals and free of charge if returned on exiting the Caledonian Canal). 

On the Crinan Canal access is via key code supplied at the sea lock. 

Payment for other facilities is by digital card or cash depending on the location. Customers must bring their own hoses to use the water points. 

Our local Waterway offices will be able to assist you with enquiries about Waterway facilities.