Safe speed and proper look out

When recreational boating accidents happen, they often follow the same pattern - hazards are seen too late and vessels are moving too fast to take effective avoiding action. Unfortunately, excessive speed failure to maintain a proper look out have resulted in people losing their lives. 

The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs), include two fundamental obligations for all vessels. These are: 

• Maintaining a proper look-out (rule 5) 
• Maintaining a safe speed (rule 6) 

These are the first two rules in the COLREGs ‘Steering and Sailing Rules’, reflecting how critical they are to safe navigation. They are not only legal requirements, but they are also key to protecting your own safety, your crew, and other water users. 

Weather, sea conditions and tide can all affect visibility and vessel handling, including your ability to slow down or alter course. On busy waters, you also need to take account of traffic density and other water users, such as swimmers and paddlers, some of whom may be difficult to see. 

Keeping a proper lookout and adjusting your speed to the conditions gives you time to see what’s developing around you and time to respond safely. 

‘Proper look-out’ means: 
 

• Using all available means to assess the situation 
  This should always include using sight and hearing but, depending on circumstances and equipment available, can also include monitoring VHF radio, radar, and AIS. While AIS has its weaknesses, it can still be a valuable tool in helping to identify other vessels in the area that may pose a risk of collision. 
• Considering visibility and conditions 
  Fog, darkness, glare, rain, spray and even condensation on the inside of windows can all restrict what you can see. Remember that instrument lights, torchlight and phone screens can impair your night vision. 
• Being aware of blind spots 
  Sails on yachts and window frames or door pillars on motor vessels can create blind spots which obscure hazards. 

Maintaining a safe speed 

Travelling at a safe speed gives you the time and space needed to see developing situations and take action to avoid hazards.  

What constitutes a safe speed depends on multiple factors, including weather conditions, traffic density and the manoeuvrability of your vessel. Speed restrictions exist in many ports and harbours to help manage safety, but even when complying with the speed limit you may still be travelling too fast for the prevailing conditions. 

In some more confined areas, such as narrower rivers, authorities may impose “no wash zones”. Here the aim is to reduce risk of damage to other craft, water users and environs, but it does not absolve you from the obligation to also be monitoring and maintaining the speed of your vessel as well.

When determining a safe speed, you need to consider: 

• Visibility 
• Traffic density 
• Manoeuvrability of your vessel in the prevailing conditions, including stopping distance and turning ability 
• Background lighting at night, which may affect your ability to spot other vessels 
• Wind, sea state and current 
• Proximity of navigational hazards 
• Your draught in relation to available depth of water 
• If using radar; equipment limitations, range and scale constraints, and the effects of sea state, weather or interference on detection 

Remember other water users 

Not everyone on the water is in an easily spotted boat. Near the shore, you should expect paddleboarders, kayakers and swimmers — even in winter. These can be difficult to see, particularly in choppy or low‑light conditions. 

Maintaining a proper look-out and adjusting your speed appropriately is essential to ensuring their safety as well as your own.