Classic form
Boat hire booking form with the licence and the weather policy on it
A boat hire booking turns on two answers that a date field cannot capture, which are what licence the person at the wheel holds and what happens when the bureau issues a wind warning. This booking form asks for both, prices each boat by its passenger limit, and takes a signature under a weather policy written in plain terms.
The form itself
A static copy of the finished form, exactly as it renders. Nothing here can be filled in or submitted, so read it as a reference and build your own from the button above.
Every field, and what it collects
The complete field list, in the order respondents meet it.
- Name of the person who will skipperNameRequired
- Mobile and emailShort textRequired
- Which boat?Single choiceRequired
- Options: Half cabin 4.5 metre, up to 4 people, $190 for half a day · Centre console 5.5 metre, up to 6 people, $280 for half a day · Pontoon boat 6 metre, up to 8 people, $340 for half a day · Fishing runabout 5 metre with sounder, up to 5 people, $260 for half a day · Skippered charter, we drive, up to 8 people, $720 for half a day
- DateDateRequired
- How long?Single choiceRequired
- Options: Half day, 4 hours · Full day, 8 hours · Sunset run, 3 hours · Two days, overnight on a mooring
- How many people will be on board, including children?NumberRequired
- What marine licence does the skipper hold?Single choiceRequired
- Options: Queensland recreational marine driver licence · A recreational marine or boat licence from another Australian state · An overseas boat licence · No licence, book me the skippered charter instead · No licence, and the boat has an engine of 4.5 kW or less
- Licence number and where it was issuedShort text
- Can everyone on board swim?Single choiceRequired
- Options: Yes, everyone is a confident swimmer · Mostly, one or two are weak swimmers · No, some people cannot swim · There will be children under 12 on board · There will be children under 12 and a non swimmer
- Weather and safetyMultiple choiceRequired
- Options: I understand the harbour office decides whether boats go out, and that a weather cancellation can be moved or refunded · I understand every person on board attends the safety briefing before departure
- Signature of the skipperSignatureRequired
Who is booking
The boat and the day
Licence and safety
Weather policy
What each field on this form collects
The first block takes the name of the person who will actually skipper, which is not always the person paying, and a mobile and email in one line. The boat radio lists five vessels, each naming its length, its passenger limit and its half day rate, with a skippered charter as the fifth. The date sits beside a duration radio covering a half day, a full day, a sunset run and an overnight on a mooring. A single number field takes the people on board including children. It stops at eight, the largest boat in the fleet, and staff check the count against the boat chosen before confirming. The safety block asks what marine licence the skipper holds across five options, takes the licence number and where it was issued, and asks whether everyone on board can swim in words that make the awkward answer easy. The last block is the weather policy, two acknowledgement ticks and the skipper signature.
The Australian pieces on this form
Recreational boat licensing in Australia is run by the states, so the licence question names the Queensland recreational marine driver licence first, then another Australian state, then an overseas licence, and it includes the answer that matters most commercially: no licence, book me the skippered charter instead. The last option reflects a real rule: in Queensland a licence is needed for a boat whose engine is more than 4.5 kW, so a small tinny with a smaller outboard can be driven without one. The rule is engine power, not speed, so staff confirm the boat before accepting that answer. The weather policy is built on the bureau of meteorology marine warnings, which are issued by zone rather than by postcode, so the paragraph names the zone and says the harbour office makes the call on the morning.
How to adapt this form
A houseboat operator replaces the duration radio with a nights field and adds a provisioning question, a pump out acknowledgement and a question about whether anyone on board has handled a vessel that size, since a houseboat handover is an hour rather than thirty minutes. A jet ski operator keeps the licence and swimmer questions, adds a rider age field and a separate acknowledgement of the exclusion zones, which is where most infringements happen. A fishing charter drops the licence question entirely, because the crew skippers, and replaces it with a target species and a tackle question, plus a seasickness note that is genuinely useful to the deckhand.
What makes this form work
Five boats, each with its limit and its rate
Length, passenger limit and half day price in every option, including the skippered charter. A group of eight sees which hulls are open to them before they choose a date, and the number field that follows stops at eight, the largest boat, so staff check the count against the boat chosen.
The licence question includes a way to book anyway
Queensland licence, another state, overseas, no licence so book the charter, and no licence for the boats of 4.5 kW or less. The fourth option converts an enquiry that would otherwise end in an apology into a different booking.
The weather policy names who decides
The harbour office makes the call on the morning when a strong wind warning is current for the bay zone, and a weather cancellation moves or refunds. Saying who decides, and that it is not negotiable from the ramp, is what stops the argument happening at seven in the morning.
Questions people ask
Why does the form ask who will skipper rather than who is booking?
Because the licence, the briefing and the signature all belong to the person at the wheel. A group booking made by somebody staying on shore is common, and asking for the skipper by name at the top means the licence details and the safety acknowledgement attach to the right person rather than to the payer.
What happens if a wind warning is issued for the day?
The harbour office cancels and the booking moves to any other date within twelve months or is refunded in full. The paragraph says the decision belongs to the office rather than the hirer, which matters because the water at a sheltered ramp routinely looks calmer than the bay it opens into.
Why ask whether everyone on board can swim?
Because it changes the briefing and sometimes the boat. Five options name weak swimmers, non swimmers and children under twelve separately, so the awkward answer is on the list and gets chosen. Lifejackets are carried for everyone regardless, and children under twelve wear one at all times in an open boat.
Is a licence always required to hire a boat in Australia?
Not always. Licensing is a state matter. In Queensland the licence is needed once the engine is more than 4.5 kW, so a boat with a small outboard can be driven without one, which is why the last option exists. Anything bigger needs the licence, and an operator confirms which category a specific boat falls into before the booking is accepted.
Does the signature make the weather policy enforceable?
It evidences that a named skipper read the policy and the safety terms on a particular day, printed alongside their answers in the response PDF. For a half day hire that is the right weight of paperwork. It is the credit and refund terms, more than the safety rules, that the signature usually ends up settling.
Why is the passenger number capped at the boat limit?
Because a vessel carries a stated maximum and exceeding it is both unsafe and an offence. The number field stops at eight, the largest limit in the fleet, and every boat option states its own limit in the label, so a group of eight sees which two boats suit them. Staff check the count against the boat chosen.
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