Questions on fuel abroad for boat owners
For details of all cruising events please contact Maggie Puleston at Ocean Village.
Tel: 023 8021 0877 or email maggie@rsyc.org.uk
The RYA has recently published advice for those of us who intend “going foreign” this season and they are keen to keep an eye on how things pan out should our tanks of red diesel be questioned by foreign officials.
The concern is that some customs officials will not have been fully informed of recent developments in the UK and will now assume that it is not legal for recreational boaters to carry red diesel.
As we know, any new system needs time to bed down and this may be the case for the UK’s new red diesel system. "There are, however, always going to be some officials at a local level who will not toe the European or even national line” says the RYA.
Confirmation Letter
In order to provide you with some back up should this occur, the RYA can provide you with a letter from the European Commission which states that it is still legal to carry red diesel bought in the UK. Visit: http://www.rya.org.uk/Activities/yachtcruising
/cruisingnews/April2009/Pages/proveitusingreddieselabroad.aspx
Receipts
In addition to this, it is well worth bearing in mind that you still need to prove that your red diesel was bought in the UK, so do carry your receipts on board.
Jerry Cans
There is an additional twist. If you are carrying spare fuel in a jerry can outside the UK, then it has to be white diesel. Red diesel in cans is not legal and is likely to cause particular offence to overseas authorities.
The above information comes from RYA News.
Bob Stevenson
Captain of Cruising.