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One of the problems that faces people who live on boats, or
even spend holidays aboard, is transport when they are ashore. Buses and
trains are fine for visits to places inland or up the coast but not very
helpful if one wants to haul provisions back to a marina from a
supermarket or travel off the beaten track. Renting
a vehicle is the usual solution but we came across an excellent idea
recently.
When a gentleman who had been living in a marina for
several months was about to leave, he announced on the local VHF 'net'
(see Cruisers
Net in a separate window if you don't know what one is and are
wondering) that he was planning to leave behind a car he had been using
during his stay. He wondered whether anyone would like to take the vehicle
on and several people were, indeed, interested. It was decided that the
car would become a shared asset. The original group insured the car for
any driver, splitting the cost between them. One of the group, a man
permanently based in the area, was the official owner but the vehicle
actually belonged to five people, initially, who had split the purchase
price between them. Others could ask to use the vehicle and, provided they
had a current driving license, they were allowed to join the group, paying
the existing group a share of the purchase price to become a joint
'owner'.
It was agreed that the vehicle could not be driven on
unmade roads, to preserve it for as long as possible. The annual
insurance, vehicle licensing and other costs were met by weekly
contributions from everyone in the group, saved in an account opened by
the nominal owner. It was agreed that an amount would be calculated to
cover maintenance and the other costs and divided by fifty-two. Each week,
that amount must be put into the 'kitty' and, if maintenance came to more
than the agreed amount, the figure must be recalculated, to avoid making
inroads into the money set aside for the legalities. It was also agreed
that the nominal 'owner' paid only half as much as the others because he
was responsible for the administration of the vehicle and the account that
went with it, as an inducement to him to shoulder the burden, however
light!
Soon there were a dozen or more in the group at any
given time, making running costs very reasonable for all. When someone was
leaving the area, a portion of the money that person had paid towards the
purchase price was refunded to them if they could not find anyone to
purchase their share. The amount refunded depended upon depreciation, so
that someone who was only in the group for two or three weeks would
actually get most of their money back. To make this easier, the nominal
owner made the refund from the account and when a new member joined and
purchased a share, the money was put back into the account.
Apparently, it was rare that a departing 'owner' failed
to find someone interested in purchasing a share, since there were usually
people arriving at the marina at any given time who could easily see the
benefits of the arrangement.
The more people in the group, the cheaper it was for
everyone. Fuel costs were met by those using the car at the time and
anyone who returned the car to its parking space with the fuel tank less
than half full was soon taken to task! Obviously, some people used the
vehicle more often than others, but it was still cheaper for the
infrequent users than renting a car for the day when they needed
one.
Members used the car to drive one another to the nearest
airport, which saved on taxi fees and the impression we had was that the
scheme worked very well for all concerned.
Have you come across a similar scheme? We'd love to hear how you
solve your transportation problems ashore...
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