Socal Chartered Boat Dive Protocol

[ScubaCenterTemecula]

My question is, was there any attempt to contact th OP? If you knew that you were short 2 divers why not find out where they were? From my experience, I've never seen a check in time on a boat. It's always been, be on the boat with all of your gear and all of the paperwork filled out before we leave, that's it. IMO a check in time an hour before the boat's normally scheduled departure time(if that's what it is) is just going to create problems, obviously. Maybe you should switch to the normal boat protocol that has work for so many years.

My $0.005

P.S. appreciate you posting your side

Billy

No, I did not try to contact the OP. As I've pointed out previously, and several other people have as well... it's not uncommon in any way to have people just not show up. However Karen and I appear to have smoothed this over and will likely have an outcome that we can both live with. But thanks for that one final request for clarification.

With that said, I'm putting this one to bed. Thanks everyone for the input, I'm sure some of it will be put to good use in policy setting in the future.

This is the last post from me on this thread.

Phillip

 

[Codyjp]

Glad to see a problem be resolved peacefully. keep us posted on the upcoming trips.

 

[Empty V]

No, I did not try to contact the OP. As I've pointed out previously, and several other people have as well... it's not uncommon in any way to have people just not show up. However Karen and I appear to have smoothed this over and will likely have an outcome that we can both live with. But thanks for that one final request for clarification.

With that said, I'm putting this one to bed. Thanks everyone for the input, I'm sure some of it will be put to good use in policy setting in the future.

This is the last post from me on this thread.

Phillip

I sense a little bit of hostility, if you don't want to talk about having a 6AM "check in time" then just say that instead of dancing. If you guys had a charter on a boat I wanted to get on, and found out that I would have to check in by 6AM for a 7AM departure I'd find another dive op. As long as you're there with everything taken care of before the boat leaves then what's the problem, are you really in that big of a rush? It just sounds like an odd way to do things, but who am I but a lowly consumer.

Best of luck.

Billy

 

[merxlin]

I sense a little bit of hostility, if you don't want to talk about having a 6AM "check in time" then just say that instead of dancing. If you guys had a charter on a boat I wanted to get on, and found out that I would have to check in by 6AM for a 7AM departure I'd find another dive op. As long as you're there with everything taken care of before the boat leaves then what's the problem, are you really in that big of a rush? It just sounds like an odd way to do things, but who am I but a lowly consumer.

Best of luck.

Billy

I think he is done posting here. At the risk of I'd like to address this. I wish more boats had check in times. At least then you'd have fewer people show up at 6:58 for a 7am boat, shoe-horning their gear in, and in general making a pain in the a$$ of themselves while everyone else is already settled and has been ready to go for 1/2 hour. I typically get to my boats at 6 for a 7AM leave anyway, so for me this system would work. Just my $.002 ($.0083 after taxes, $.0085 with my spiffy tax rebate)

 

[Empty V]

I think he is done posting here. At the risk of I'd like to address this. I wish more boats had check in times. At least then you'd have fewer people show up at 6:58 for a 7am boat, shoe-horning their gear in, and in general making a pain in the a$$ of themselves while everyone else is already settled and has been ready to go for 1/2 hour. I typically get to my boats at 6 for a 7AM leave anyway, so for me this system would work. Just my $.002 ($.0083 after taxes, $.0085 with my spiffy tax rebate)

I usually show up about 30min before departure and am settled in about 15min, never 6:58. Then again I guess his policy is for the inconsiderate who think of no one but themselves. Maybe he has had too many divers that have held them up and maybe I expect too much from people. I still think that leaving at 6:15 is ridiculous but you're right, at this point, there is no point.

Billy

 

[ddavies]

I am glad that a settlement may have been worked out. I am also glad that I read these postings. I am going out there soon and was starting to look into the various boat trips available. I am not familiar with the protocols. From Phillip's postings, I believe I would not have understood that if not checked-in by 6:00 I could loose my trip.

This has helped me to understand that I must get it clear what the trip-wire is that causes the no-refund to happen. In this case, check-in stops at 6:00. Now - back to looking up what trips are available in February.

 

[Empty V]

I am glad that a settlement may have been worked out. I am also glad that I read these postings. I am going out there soon and was starting to look into the various boat trips available. I am not familiar with the protocols. From Phillip's postings, I believe I would not have understood that if not checked-in by 6:00 I could loose my trip.

This has helped me to understand that I must get it clear what the trip-wire is that causes the no-refund to happen. In this case, check-in stops at 6:00. Now - back to looking up what trips are available in February.

Just so you know in my experience this is not normal protocol. Normally it's recommended to be there an hour before departure as to have ample time to settle your gear and sign the waivers. I've never heard of this check in and leave 45min early even though you know you're missing divers. But to each their own and it's great that we have the internet to share our experiences, post praises/complaints and even clear up misunderstandings.

Billy

 

[CompuDude]

Just so you know in my experience this is not normal protocol. Normally it's recommended to be there an hour before departure as to have ample time to settle your gear and sign the waivers. I've never heard of this check in and leave 45min early even though you know you're missing divers. But to each their own and it's great that we have the internet to share our experiences, post praises/complaints and even clear up misunderstandings.

Billy

I second this. I've been on a lot of boats here in SoCal, and while there is usually a recommendation to be there by X:00, there is also a stated departure time of Y:00... just like there was here.

It is rude and inconsiderate for someone to show up at Y:00 (the actual departure time), I'll agree, but that doesn't change the departure time. I've been on boats a number of times where people were simply held up in traffic... and every time, the boat has waited until the official departure time (Y:00) to leave, not simply split when they were tired of waiting since the late people MAY have been no-shows. I have NEVER seen this sort of thing happen on any other local charter.

I'm glad Phillip worked things out to the OP's [general] satisfaction, but I know I'll never book one of their charters. Simply stated, the policy is unreasonable. A departure time is a departure time, no matter what the "check in" time is. On an airline, if I miss the check in time, I know my seat may be sold to someone else on standby, but I do not expect the plane to leave early simply because I missed the check in time. Nor do I expect them to wait beyond the planned departure time... but if I get in before the actual departure, I expect the plane to be at the end of the board gate until the stated departure time, even if I have to hit it at a run and wait for my luggage to follow on a later flight.

 

[CompuDude]

After receiving a PM from ScubaCenterTemecula, I'll temper my comment with the following admission: Per his statement “Check in is no later than 6am, once you have checked in you need to get your gear on the boat as soon as possible as we NEVER leave later than 7am.” ... it seems possible that a "departure time" of 7am was never actually given, so perhaps it is overly harsh to accuse them of violating a firm departure time.... since there wasn't one. It does sound like the employees who later answered the phone were at least somewhat cognizant of a 7am departure time, however, and the wording is, frankly, terrible, so the misunderstanding certainly doesn't seem to be restricted to the OP.

I recommend the shop change their policy immediately to something more in line with the local norms, and tighten up their language to include a simple, firm departure time. If they want to leave earlier, there is no harm in setting the departure time earlier. If everyone is on the boat and they want to leave earlier than the stated time, I'm sure no one will complain. But setting a different check in time and having a vague departure time is simply asking for problems like this one.

And any way you slice it, it's far from the norm in this area, and as a result you're fairly likely to have issues like this on occasion... issues that could be avoided simply by posting (and verbally advising of) a firm "Departure Time".

 

[Empty V]

Hey Kalani, it was nice of Phil to PM you, I couldn't even get him to answer a few simple questions. I guess he doesn't like my avatar :14:

Billy