Boat Sharing Agreement Template (US)

Make the shares consistent, and say what they actually mean

Ownership shares, cost shares and usage shares are three different things, and a co-ownership document has to be explicit about each. Two people can own 50/50 and still agree that one uses the boat twice as much and pays a larger share of running costs; or own 70/30 with usage split evenly. The source document sets percentages in one clause and asserts equality in the next, which leaves the parties with no answer at all.

This template records each owner's percentage share once, states that costs and any sale proceeds follow that share unless a different figure is recorded for usage, and keeps the two figures visibly separate so nobody has to infer one from the other.

Put the usage rota in the document

This is the clause the free versions omit and the one owners argue about. This template offers a booking system with a named method — a shared calendar, an alternating-weekend rota, or blocks allocated in advance — a rule for peak dates and holidays that alternates year by year, a maximum consecutive-days limit, a notice period for cancelling a booked slot, and a fallback so an unclaimed slot becomes available to the other owner.

It also decides two things that quietly cause trouble: whether an owner may let a guest take the helm without them aboard, and whether the boat may be chartered out to third parties for money, which almost always breaches the insurance policy unless it has been arranged for.

Budget the money instead of arguing about it later

Shared boats generate two kinds of cost: predictable annual ones — insurance, berth, registration, winter storage, routine service — and unpredictable ones. This template sets an annual budget agreed in advance, monthly or quarterly contributions into a joint account, and a spending threshold above which one owner cannot commit the others without written consent. Emergency repairs needed to keep the vessel safe or afloat are carved out of the threshold, because a boat taking on water cannot wait for a signature.

It also adds a reserve fund for the big periodic items — haul-out, antifouling, survey, engine overhaul — and a clear consequence when an owner does not pay: interest, suspension of usage rights, and ultimately the buy-out route. The source document has none of this and simply says the owners should 'agree in writing before hiring any contractors'.

Name the insurance and say who may operate the boat

A shared boat needs one policy that names every co-owner, because an accident under a policy that names only one of them can leave the other uninsured. This template records the insurer, policy number, sum insured and excess, requires every co-owner to be a named insured, and allocates the excess to the owner whose use gave rise to the claim.

It also requires each operator to hold the boating safety certificate the state of operation requires, sets a minimum experience level or an equivalent, prohibits operation under the influence, and requires an owner to report any incident, damage or grounding to the others promptly — not at the end of the season.

Give the arrangement an exit that works with two owners

Unanimity clauses in a two-owner document produce deadlock by design. This template adds a graduated exit: a right of first refusal so a departing owner must offer their share to the others at a price fixed by an agreed valuation method (a marine surveyor's valuation, or an average of two brokers' figures); a buy-out period with a payment deadline; and if nobody buys, a route to sale of the whole vessel with an agreed broker and reserve price.

It adds a deadlock provision for the situations that are not about exit at all — a disputed major repair, an unaffordable upgrade — starting with mediation and ending with the buy-out mechanism, so the disagreement resolves instead of freezing the boat in the slip.

Cover the events that end arrangements without warning

Death, incapacity, divorce, bankruptcy and relocation all transfer or complicate a co-owner's share, and the source document addresses none of them. This template states what happens on each: the share passes to the estate or trustee, the surviving owners get an option to buy at the agreed valuation within a stated period, and until that is resolved the estate has the financial obligations but not the usage rights.

It also records the practical facts that decide whether the arrangement works at all — whose name the vessel is registered in, who holds the berth licence, whether the boat is subject to a loan or marine mortgage, and where the keys, papers and insurance documents are kept.

Clause-by-clause guide

The vessel and how it is held

Identifies the boat, its hull identification number and registration, whose name it is registered in, and any loan or mortgage secured on it.

Shares

Each owner's percentage share of ownership and of costs, and their contribution to the purchase price.

Usage and booking

The booking method, notice, the maximum consecutive days, the rule for peak dates, and what happens to an unclaimed slot.

Guests, skippers and chartering

Whether a guest may operate the boat without the owner aboard, and whether the boat may be chartered out for money.

Operator competence

The certificate, experience and sobriety requirements for anyone at the helm.

Annual budget and contributions

The agreed budget, the joint account, the contribution schedule and the spending threshold that requires consent.

Reserve fund

Regular contributions towards haul-out, antifouling, survey and engine work so the big bills do not arrive as a shock.

Emergency repairs

Lets one owner authorise work needed to keep the vessel safe or afloat without waiting for consent, with prompt notice to the others.

Insurance and the excess

One policy naming every co-owner, with the excess allocated to the owner whose use gave rise to the claim.

Damage, incidents and reporting

Who pays for damage caused during an owner's use, and the duty to report incidents promptly.

Default on contributions

Interest, suspension of usage rights, and the route to a buy-out if arrears continue.

Transfer and right of first refusal

A departing owner must offer their share to the others first, at a price set by the agreed valuation method.

Deadlock and dispute resolution

Mediation first, then the buy-out mechanism, so an unresolved disagreement does not freeze the boat.

Death, incapacity, divorce and bankruptcy

What happens to a share on each event, and the option period for the remaining owners.

Sale of the whole vessel

How the decision is made, who the broker is, the reserve price, and how proceeds are split.

US compliance checklist

Co-ownership is mostly a matter of agreement, but registration, insurance, tax and lending rules each impose their own requirements.

• Get the registration or documentation right

  Record whether the vessel is state-registered or documented with the Coast Guard, and in whose names. Co-owners recorded on the certificate have rights that a private side agreement cannot override, so make the certificate match the agreement.

• Name every co-owner on the insurance policy

  A policy naming one owner may leave the others without cover when they are operating the boat. Ask the insurer to name every co-owner and to confirm the arrangement is acceptable — some policies restrict shared ownership or usage by non-owners.

• Check the boating safety certificate requirement in the state of operation

  Most states require operators within certain age bands, and some require all operators, to hold a boating safety education certificate. The requirement follows the state where the boat is used.

  33 CFR 175.15 — required safety equipment

• Check the lender's position if the boat is financed

  A loan or preferred ship mortgage on the vessel usually restricts transfers of ownership interests. Confirm what the lender permits before any co-owner buys, sells or transfers a share.

• Decide whether chartering is permitted, and insure for it

  Chartering the boat out for money is normally excluded from a pleasure-craft policy and can bring commercial licensing requirements. If the owners want that option, arrange the cover first and record the decision.

• Consider whether an entity is a better structure

  Some co-owners hold a boat through an LLC to simplify transfers and clarify liability. That brings its own filing, tax and insurance consequences — take advice on which structure fits before assuming a private agreement is enough.

• Keep an expense record all owners can see

  A shared account with visible statements removes most cost disputes and gives the buy-out valuation a defensible starting point.

How to complete the boat sharing agreement

1. Identify the boat and how it is held. Add the vessel details, the hull identification number, the registration or documentation number, whose names it is held in, and any loan secured on it.
2. Set the shares. Enter each owner's percentage share and contribution, and confirm whether costs and proceeds follow those percentages.
3. Agree the usage rota. Choose the booking method, the notice period, the maximum consecutive days and the rule for peak dates and holidays.
4. Set the budget and reserve. Enter the annual budget, the contribution schedule, the joint account and the spending threshold that requires everyone's consent.
5. Record the insurance. Add the insurer, policy number, sum insured and excess, and confirm every co-owner is a named insured.
6. Agree the exit terms. Set the valuation method, the right of first refusal period and the payment deadline, then sign — one copy for each owner.

Frequently asked questions

Related templates

• Boat Bill of Sale Template (US)
• Boat Slip Lease Agreement Template (US)
• Partnership Agreement Template (US)