Originally posted by
Mr V
Quote:
I visit the lake infrequently, and operate a boat very rarely.
NH law now requires that I have a boater's certificate in order to operate a boat over a certain HP.
Curious as to the penalty for not having such a certificate, I checked and the first offense is a $50 fine, and all subsequent offenses are $250.
No criminal fines or penalties, it would seem, just a fairly nominal civil sanction; seems to be a traffic infraction.
So, I weigh the odds: what are the odds that the MP will actually discover me operating a boat without a certificate?
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You are correct in your assessment of the penalty for not carrying a certificate, but ask yourself this. If you are stopped by the MP and don't have a certificate you'll probably get a warning on your first day...but the MP will also take note of your boat and bow numbers. You don't think that when they see you out on the water over the next day or two they won't stop you? Of course they will, then that warning becomes a fine...and so on and so on... Will they begin to target your boat? What do you think?
So you spend a week at the lake...day one you are warned, day 2 that warning turns into a fine, but you keep boating. Every day they spot you headed out and every day they stop you...so your non-compliance just set you back $1,300.
You decide.