In Reply to: Personal boats and liability posted by Eric S on March 06, 2007 at 18:50:40:

I haven't posted on this forum before so I apologize for jumping into a conversation late (although I did review a number of the posts).

The one thing that I keep seeing is that the boat-owners have decided they're not going to take out anybody except for people they know very well -- people they "know" won't sue them.

My question is, if, in the worst possible scenario, your best buddy dies while diving off your boat, what's going to prevent his child, his mother, or even his ex-wife from suing you?

It seems a little naive to think that one's solution to overall liability is to be selective in who one brings on one's boat.

As a Divemaster, I would think the proper way to address this is to focus on ensuring that one is prepared for potential accidents. This means getting a Rescue (or even DM certification), ensuring the proper emergency equipoment is available (a first aid kit, an O2 kit).

Just my 2 cents