New Regulations for Boat Rentals on Lake Norman
Two of the marinas WCCB Charlotte talked to said that they are no longer offering rental services due to the new rules.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The birds are chirping, the trees are blooming, and soon the boats will be humming on Lake Norman. Some things never change in the Carolinas, but this year, the rules and regulations regarding boat rentals will.
“It’s something that we hope makes for a safer summer,” Jarid Church, a sergeant with the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office, tells us.
Effective this year, the Lake Norman Marine Commission is requiring boat rental companies to purchase a minimum of $500,000 of liability insurance and submit each boat to a Coast Guard inspection every two years at a cost of $2 per craft. This is in addition to having to take a boat education course if they were born in 1988 or later, and providing those renting boats with a comprehensive safety checklist along with an updated map or navigation app on Lake Norman. It’s all in the name of safety, but it’s causing the rental economy to take on water.
We reached out to five local marinas here on Lake Norman for comment, but none wanted to speak with us on camera. Two did tell WCCB Charlotte that they are not renting boats this year due to the new regulations.
The Iredell County Lake Enforcement Unit on Lake Norman says it’s better to be safe than sorry.
“I would rather come to you at a pre-launch safety inspection and tell you that you’re missing a fire extinguisher or a type four throwable than pull you over out here after an incident has happened and someone either got hurt or a loss of life and tell you, ‘Man, if you just had this one life of safety equipment,'” says Church.
Local boat mechanic Justin Huemmer is all for the new regulations.
“A lot of people who rent the boats don’t actually know what they’re doing,” says Huemmer, “And it’s a very big hazard to be out in the lake and not actually know how to run a boat.”
Law enforcement is optimistic this update can streamline their safety operations.
“The hope is that it’s going to implement a more uniform process and get everyone on the same page,” adds Church.
