Safety rules for leisure boats in the UK: law and advice
For a private boat under 13.7 m, UK law asks surprisingly little, and most of what keeps you alive is advice rather than law. Here is what the MCA says applies to every boat, what’s required if you carry a radio or a beacon, and what’s best practice. It’s a summary for planning, not legal advice.
SOLAS V: the rules for every boat
The following requirements apply to all vessels, irrespective of size.
MCA, MGN 599 (M) Amendment 1, section 7 · gov.uk
- Plan your passage: the weather, the tides, your boat’s limits, your crew, the dangers on the way, a plan B, and someone ashore who knows your plans.
- Radar reflector: fit one “if practicable”, so ships navigating by radar can see you. The MCA says to fit the largest you can.
- Life-saving signals: skippers must have access to the illustrated table of life-saving signals. On a boat too small to carry it, learn it before you go.
- Help others: respond to a distress signal you see or hear and help if you can, and never misuse distress signals.
Lifejackets: advice, not law, on a private boat
The MCA says pleasure vessels under 13.7 m aren’t covered by any statutory requirement to carry life-saving appliances. Its best-practice advice is still clear: wear a lifejacket, properly serviced, with a light, a whistle and crotch straps. HM Coastguard asks the same. Some harbour authorities set their own rules in byelaws or directions, so check where you launch.
Kill cords
If your boat or jet ski is fitted with a kill cord, the MCA’s advice is that the driver wears it at all times: if the driver goes overboard, it stops the engine. Carry a spare.
Radios: licence and operator
Under the Wireless Telegraphy Act (2006), radio communications equipment on UK vessels, unless exempted, has to be properly licensed and under the control of a certified operator.
MCA, MGN 599 (M) Amendment 1, 13.5 · gov.uk
Ofcom handles ship radio licences and the MMSI numbers that come with them; for leisure sailors the usual operator qualification is the Short Range Certificate (SRC). The MCA’s best-practice advice is to carry two independent ways of calling for help by maritime radio.
EPIRBs and PLBs: registration is now the law
Since 15 April 2026, a 406 MHz EPIRB or PLB carried on a UK boat, or on a powered watercraft such as a jet ski, must be registered with the UK Beacon Registry. Not registering is an offence. Registering is free and takes about 15 minutes, and it gives the Coastguard your boat details and an emergency contact when your beacon goes off.
Jet skis and other powered watercraft
Since 31 March 2023 the Merchant Shipping (Watercraft) Order has applied parts of merchant shipping law to jet skis and other powered watercraft, including its offences for dangerous conduct. Ride as if you’re on a boat, because in law you now largely are.
Tell someone ashore
RYA SafeTrx closed on 31 December 2025. HM Coastguard’s advice now is to carry a reliable means of communication and to “tell someone at home where you are going and when you expect to get back”, so they can call 999 and ask for the Coastguard if you’re late. What changed with SafeTrx · How to call the Coastguard.
| Item | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Passage plan | Law (SOLAS V) | MGN 599 |
| Radar reflector | Law, “if practicable” (SOLAS V) | MGN 599 |
| Life-saving signals table | Law, have access to it (SOLAS V) | MGN 599 |
| VHF / DSC radio | Not required; if fitted, licence + certified operator | MGN 599, Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 |
| 406 MHz EPIRB / PLB | Not required; if carried, must be registered (free) | SI 2026/306 |
| Lifejacket | Advice: wear one (local byelaws may differ) | MGN 599 |
| Kill cord | Advice: wear it if fitted | MGN 599 |
Want the list for your own boat? The safety gear checklist asks five questions and gives the UK legal lines with their source (including the extra lists for boats of 13.7 m or more), then what’s worth adding.
VesselSOS in UK waters
- Life in danger? Tap “Yes, a life is in danger” and the app dials 999. The screen shows your GPS position in words, the HM Coastguard area you’re in, and a word-for-word script; when the operator answers, say “Coastguard, I am at sea”.
- Radio mode shows a VHF channel 16 MAYDAY text filled with your boat’s name, call sign in the NATO alphabet, MMSI and position, for you to read on your own radio. Sailing abroad, the app picks the responsible rescue centre by position in 118 countries (Europe, North and Central America, the Caribbean, Asia, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean and Africa).
- A live link for the people ashore (part of Pro, with a 14-day free trial): your position, speed, course and phone battery in any browser, no app needed on their side. You send it by text yourself.
- Not an emergency? Tap “No” and 999 stays free. The app doesn’t list a UK breakdown service, so save your own provider’s number in your phone before you go.
What it doesn’t do: it isn’t connected to 999, HM Coastguard or the RNLI, and it doesn’t file a passage plan with anyone. If you set a return time and don’t answer its “Are you OK?”, it texts your own Emergency and Live contacts with the live link; it never alerts the Coastguard, so your contacts decide whether to call 999. A phone doesn’t replace a VHF radio with DSC, a PLB or EPIRB, or a lifejacket.
iPhone only, in invite-only TestFlight beta. Not in the App Store yet, no Android.
Quick answers
Do I have to wear a lifejacket on a boat in the UK?
Not by national law on a private leisure boat under 13.7 m. The MCA and HM Coastguard advise you to wear one, and some harbour authorities have their own rules, so check locally.
Do I have to register my PLB?
Yes, if it’s a 406 MHz beacon carried on a UK boat or on a powered watercraft such as a jet ski: registration with the UK Beacon Registry has been compulsory since 15 April 2026. It’s free.
Does SOLAS apply to my small boat?
Parts of SOLAS Chapter V do: passage planning, a radar reflector if practicable, access to the life-saving signals table, helping others and not misusing distress signals. The MCA says they apply to all vessels, irrespective of size.
Sources
- MCA — MGN 599 (M) Amendment 1, pleasure vessels: regulations and best practice
- The Merchant Shipping (EPIRB and PLB Registration and Radiocommunications) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
- GOV.UK — Register a UK 406 MHz emergency beacon
- The Merchant Shipping (Watercraft) Order 2023
- GOV.UK — RYA SafeTrx closing: how to prepare and stay safe at sea
Checked October 2026. Rules change — confirm with the MCA, HM Coastguard or your harbour authority before you go.
This page summarises official guidance for planning; it isn’t legal advice. Where this page and the official text differ, the official text wins. Spotted an error? Email support@vesselsos.com.