What would you do if.......

[MeMe]

..whilst walking the dog early one morning you happened upon a nice little 2.80 Avon r.i.b washed ashore following the previous nights storm ? Anyway, I pulled it home with my jeep and here it sits ! The "D" Ring on the hull has parted showing obvious signs that it had come adrift from a mooring, however, although it may have been a local one it could also have been from Ireland ! Should I keep this handy little run about or, visit the local Yacht Club (if I were even aloud to enter the premises) and post a note on the bullitin board advising the same, or......"what would you do"?

.... Answers please.

[Andy Stevens]

I would have thought you own it due to the fact you salvaged it!

If it belongs to a club, maybe give it back, if not, keep it, the owner should have tied it better!

If someone can claim salvage by throwing you a rope to tow you, then hauling a 2.8 rib up the beack into your car must be as good!

[Tim M]

Keep it; finders keepers!

[Graham H]

Did you use your winch

[Keith Hart]

Keep it; finders keepers

I should imagine that if you lost something you cared about then you may feel differently about that!

This is the position in law as far as I understand it:

Report your find to the local police. You can do this by telephone. Tell them that you are holding onto the dingy and that it will be available for the looser. The police will record your find. If the loss is not reported then you continue to keep the dingy. If someone reports the loss then the police can inform them where it is. If they then ask for it back you must let them have it.

By loosing something the 'title' to it does not pass to the person who finds it.

Do the above and you have both complied with the law AND your moral responsibilities.

Keith (do the right thing) Hart

[Richard B]

...they found your RIB washed ashore after a storm?

Originally Posted by Andy Stevens

I would have thought you own it due to the fact you salvaged it!

Originally Posted by timofengland

finders keepers!

Not true - you don't have legal title - AFAIK you must present the "wreck" to the Receiver of Wrecks to resolve any title claim.

Card in the yach club sounds like a good start

[EDDO]

MeMe
I would try my best to return it.
Ed

[Alan]

Uncharitable lot in the NW ain't you?! Reap what you so and all that.
I'd also contact coastguard about the dinghy in case anyone has reported missing. Make all efforts to find rightful owner and if you cant then feel justified in keeping it. We did the same thing on the first RIb.net gathering at Plymouth last year when we found a dinghy drifting around off the river Yealm. Believe it got returned to rightful owner who made donation to RNLI.

[The Jackeens]

Well said Alan


Us

[Andy Gee]

I owuld try to find the rightful owner and if neither I or the Police/CG could then obviously you can keep it, after all what goes around comes around .
Andy

[Nick Hearne]

Well done Graham you found my little boat!
Thank you so much, I will be along to collect it at the weekend!
Nick

Just kidding but you know what you, well I hope you do!
Do as you would like or hope that some one would if it where your boat!
Nick

[Andy Stevens]

Telling the Police would be a waste of time, it has nothing to do with "speeding" motorists!

At what cost and lengths should someone go to return something someone lost though.

Everyones going on about "do what you'd want done back" but this rule doesn't work in this world.

My friend is a taxi driver. He took somone a fair distance and dropped them off. When he got back to the office, he found a plastic bag in the footwell. Upon opening the bag, low and behold there was about £20,000 in cash in it.
He finished work and retraced his long journey, knocked on the door of the place where he had dropped the man and when the door opened, told the chap he had left the money in his cab and he had returned to give it back.

The man held out his arm, took the bag, muttered cheers and slammed the door on the taxi drivers face! Didn't even pay for the trip!

It's now listed in my mates "things i would have done differently" list lol!


Stick some cards up, ask a few questions, tell the CG but don't waste too much time on it.

[Alan]

So lets all moan about the uncaring and selfish nature of society and then do our best to perpetuate it then.

[Andy Stevens]

NO, just don't run around for weeks trying to find the owner.

[EDDO]

Andy
You are right, there are a lot of Shits in this world!
I dont kin like em and dont want to be one.
Ed

[Jono]

Mmmm... hungry mackerel....

[The Jackeens]

Good advice from Alan...make all reasonable efforts and then take the next step.

Us

[Jono]

Originally Posted by Alan

Uncharitable lot in the NW ain't you?! Reap what you so and all that.....

.....errr? Just look at the location of those saying "keep it" Portsmouth? Norwich?. Has the NW moved or summat? Damn! Must buy a new map.....

Oh and one more little thing? None of the above "legal" advice is strictly correct, although well intentioned. A Marine solicitor will put anyone straight. It's a lot more complex than I imagined....... live and learn Eh?

[Alan]

Originally Posted by Jono

.....errr? Just look at the location of those saying "keep it" Portsmouth? Norwich?. Has the NW moved or summat? Damn! Must buy a new map.....

MeMe is from the NW isn't he? Comment was also spurred by the "Beached Whale" thread on the gallery.

Don't suggest that MeMe spends huge amounts of time finding the owner but contacting local yot club and coastguard is not too difficult surely? If no owner turns up then you've got yourself a dinghy no bother!

Oh yes and Jackeens, stop agreeing with everything I say (Its that shared Hysucat experience that brought us together isn't it )

[Andy Stevens]

We are north west of everything that counts lol