Used Car Pre-Purchase Inspection Sheet
Carry out the same inspection on every car you view, so a decision made in somebody's driveway is based on what you saw rather than what you remember.
VB-01 2 pages
Trailers and marine · TM-30
Used Boat Viewing Checklist
A free printable used boat buying checklist: hull, deck, rig, interior, engine, systems and sea trial graded, plus papers seen and the seller's answers.
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2 pages. Choose your paper size — both versions are laid out identically, so neither one gets shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fill it in type and save
The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
What this sheet is for
Rule a weak boat out at the viewing, before paying for a survey. Each area is graded good, fair or poor with notes, and the papers and answers sit beside it.
Who it is for
Anyone viewing a used sailing boat or motor boat, privately or through a broker.
How to use it
- Fill the boat and seller details, and read the hour meter before the engine is started.
- Ask for the engine to be started from cold, with you there.
- Grade each area as you go, ticking Not seen where you could not get to it.
- On the sea trial, grade the last group, then check the bilge again.
- Write the seller's answers and your verdict before you leave, while it is fresh.
What is on the sheet
2 pages, in this order:
Page 1
Printed under the title: Taken to a viewing and the sea trial: each area graded as you go, the papers you were shown and the seller's answers. It rules a boat out, or in for a survey, before you pay a surveyor. It is not a survey.
Write-on lines: Make & model · Year · Length · Hull ID · Engine hours · Seller or broker · Where viewed · Date · Asking price
Also printed: Area, and what to look at · Good · Fair · Poor · Not seen · Notes · Hull and keel · Topsides: cracks, crazing, repairs, rubbing strake · Underwater hull: blisters, repairs, old antifoul · Keel and keel-to-hull joint: cracks, weeping, rust · Rudder play; shaft, bearing, propeller, anode · Deck and fittings · Deck: soft or spongy underfoot, cracks at fittings · Stanchions, pulpits and guardrails: loose or bent · Hatches and windows: crazing, leak stains below · Rig and sails · Mast and boom: corrosion, dents, fittings · Standing rigging: wires, terminals, chainplates · Running rigging, winches and clutches · Sails: cloth, stitching, UV strip, how they set · Interior · Damp: smell, stains, water marks in lockers · Bilge: water, oil, debris; pump works · Bulkheads and where they join the hull · Upholstery, headlining, cooker and fridge · Engine · Started from cold, not warmed up before you came · Smoke at start and under load: colour, how much · Oil: level, colour, leaks underneath · Belts, hoses, water out of the exhaust
Page 2
Also printed: Area, and what to look at · Good · Fair · Poor · Not seen · Notes · Systems and electronics · Gas: locker, hose, regulator, alarm · Water tanks, pump, heads and holding tank · Seacocks: all open and close · Batteries, wiring, panel and shore power · Instruments, plotter, VHF and autopilot · Safety gear and trailer · Liferaft and lifejackets: service dates · Flares, extinguishers and first aid kit · Trailer, if included: tyres, bearings, lights · Sea trial · Starts and idles cleanly; ahead and astern · Temperature and charging steady under way · No new smoke, smell or vibration under load · Steers true; sails hoist, set and furl · Bilge still dry afterwards
Papers seen — tick what you saw as an original
- Registration or licence papers
- Proof of ownership, and the bill of sale chain
- Builder's certificate or maker's declaration
- Tax status evidence (rules differ by country)
- Service history and receipts
- Previous survey reports
Asked the seller — and your verdict
Write-on lines: Why selling, and how long owned? · Last out of the water and antifouled? · Any grounding, sinking, fire or claim? · What is included, and what is not? · Any money owed on the boat? · What has been replaced, and when? · Go, no-go, or think again · Survey before an offer? Y / N · Price in mind
Questions
Does this replace a marine survey?
No. It is for ruling boats out before you pay for a survey, not for deciding to buy without one. A surveyor can test moisture, look inside the structure and spot what a viewing will not.
Why does it ask whether the engine was started from cold?
Because a warm engine can hide starting trouble and some smoke. If it was already warm when you arrived, note it, and ask to come back and see it started cold.
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