Clarifying the rules for renting out kayaks

In 2015 several students from Monash University in Australia took rented kayaks paddling on to Lake Tekapo. A weather change and strong winds resulted in many of these boats capsizing. Two young men died. The owner of Aquanorts (the kayak rental business) was prosecuted under Maritime and Health and Safety law in December last year.

At a recent meeting of outdoor operators in Nelson, attendees were concerned that there wasn’t enough clarity about the rules around ‘freedom rentals’. I promised to look into the question.

Kayaks and other paddle craft can be rented or borrowed in a whole variety of ways .B&B’s, motor camps, kayaking clubs, event organisers and white water guides and sea kayak operators all rent out boats. So what are the rules? According to Bruce McLaren at Maritime New Zealand ‘Depending on the circumstances, different laws can apply. There are no grey areas’. Guidance can be found in the Maritime NZ guidelines for paddle craft rental activities, but if you are at all confused as to what applies to your situation (as far as maritime rules go) I strongly recommend you contact Maritime NZ directly.

Note that its not just Maritime Law that applies here. Health and Safety Law applies to any workplace. The Aquanorts owner was also charged under Health and Safety law for not taking all practicable steps to prevent the tragedy. Specifically these missing steps were: not advising the kayakers to stay visible and close to the shore, not asking them individually about their level of experience, and not contacting emergency services quickly enough.

While Maritime Law might be clear around paddle craft rental, to me there seems to be a fair bit of ‘grey’ around how operators should interpret health and safety law around rentals. For example, how should operators evaluate whether someone is an experienced paddler or not? What limits should operators put on renters of different experience levels?

There is some guidance out there. Worksafe provides a really interesting example (‘Harriets Kayak Adventures) on page 11 of this document on the duty of care for those renting boats. Worth a read if you rent out boats. There is also a really good guide to briefing rental clients on page 9 of the Commercial Kayak Operators Code of Conduct. This is a must read for anyone renting out paddle craft to people on extended trips out of sight of the operator.

Overall though, the guidance around this is scattered in different places and needs updating. In response to NZRA queries, Maritime NZ has put updating their paddle craft guidelines on their to-do list. It would be great if any update is produced in partnership with Worksafe to provide a ‘one-stop-shop’ of operator obligations. Watch this space.

Rob MacLean - Outdoor Project Manager, NZRA

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