Safe at Sea: Engine cut-off switch requirement
From 2018 through 2020, Congress passed two laws requiring, first, that manufacturers install engine cut-off switches on recreational vessels and, second, that recreational vessel operators use those engine cut-off switches. Today’s column will address the second of those two laws.
Previously under the first of these regulations, all new recreational vessels built on or after April 1, 2020, under 26 feet in length and capable of developing 115 pounds or more of static thrust are required to have an engine cut-off switch installed. (This feature has been in place on many vessels for decades.) As of April 1, operators of these recreational vessels covered under regulation must use the engine cut-off switch.
The regulation states, “An individual operating a covered recreational vessel shall use an engine cut off switch link while operating on plane or above displacement speed.” This means if you are idling or traveling at your vessel’s displacement speed, you do not need to use the cut-off switch; however, once the bow of your boat starts to rise and begins trying to plane, the cut-off switch must be used.
The law does not specify the type of engine cut-off switch that must be used. Most boats are equipped with a basic lanyard-type switch that attaches to the operator. These can be replaced by a remote version of the cut-off switch. Remote switches operate via radio signal from the operator to the cut-off switch. The remote switch can be triggered one of two ways: by distance and/or by submersion in the water. A few remote switches are quite sophisticated and can be synchronized with other devices, allowing fellow passengers — children? — to carry the remote as an M.O.B. precaution.
Some situations where the engine cut-off link will not be required include docking, trailering, trolling and operating in no-wake zones.
Seven states already have engine cut-off switch laws for traditional recreational vessels, and 44 states already have engine cut-off switch laws for personal watercraft. The law has been instituted to prevent an increasing cause of accidents and fatalities.
Each year, people are injured or killed when operators fall or get ejected from their boats. The boats will either continue on course until they run out of fuel or may eventually strike an operator in what is called the “circle of death.” A circle of death is caused by the rotation of the propeller, which can send the boat into an ever-tightening turn, potentially running over the operator or other occupants who may have been ejected from the vessel.
Establishing new habits is never easy; however, boaters whose vessels are 26 feet or less in length need to acquire the habit of using their engine cut-off switch.
Pat Schmidt is a member of America’s Boating Club of Sanibel-Captiva. For more about the chapter and its boating education courses, visit www.sancapboating.club or contact education@sanibelcaptivasps.org or 612-987-2125.