In August 1971 Congress passed the Federal Boat Safety Act which authorized the Coast Guard to establish national construction and performance standards for manufactures of recreational boats and to develop enforcement mechanisms. The standards developed by the Coast Guard include the display of capacity information, safe loading, safe powering and flotation standards for monohull boats less than 20 feet in length. Inflatables are exempt from these safety regulations.
The Coast Guard boat testing program is a voluntary program. Boat manufacturers are not required to submit their boats to the Coast Guard for compliance testing. They are, however, required to certify that their boats meet Coast Guard standards. Testing at the Coast Guard testing facility is free. Some boat manufacturers do their own testing or use mathematical formulas to take into account all of the variables in boat and hull design. If builders self-certify the boats, they cannot use the Coast Guard name on the boat's capacity label. The absolute best way to assure compliance with the standards is to have the Coast Guard do the testing and certification. This removes all doubt. The Coast Guard does enforce these regulations and has compliance officers who visit the boat manufacturers on a regular basis. They also buy boats on the open market and test them. If they do not meet the standards, action will be taken.
By law, inflatables are excluded from Coast Guard regulations relating to construction and performance standards for manufacturers of recreational boats under 20 feet. No inflatables are Coast Guard certified. It is not known how the manufacturers rate their boats for capacity and safe loading since they do not provide documentation. Inflatable manufacturers also do not provide information regarding capacity and performance when the inflatables are not fully inflated.
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