1 Foreword

 This Code of Practice has been developed jointly by the United Kingdom, its relevant overseas territories and crown dependencies^footnote, and international industry representatives.

  1.1 Where "Administration" is used in the Code, it means the Government of the State whose flag the ship is entitled to fly.

  1.2 Vessels are required to comply with the various merchant shipping regulations of the Administration which are relevant to the class of vessel to which they belong. Vessels in commercial use for sport or pleasure, such as Large Yachts, do not fall naturally into a single class and, in any case, prescribed merchant ship safety standards may be incompatible with the safety needs particular to such vessels. Since its original publication, the Large Yacht Code has made a significant impression on a maritime sector which previously found great difficulty in embracing conventional regulation. As a result the Code enjoys both national support and international recognition as a standard, breaking new ground both in its inception and methodology.

  1.3 The Code applies to vessels in commercial use for sport or pleasure (being pleasure vessels "engaged in trade" for the purpose of Article 5 Exceptions - of the International Convention on Load Lines, 1966 (ICLL)) which are 24 metres in load line length and over or, if built before 21 July 1968, 150 gross tons and over according to the tonnage measurement regulations applying at that date and which do not carry cargo and do not carry more than 12 passengers. Sail training ships are included in this application.

  1.4 The United Kingdom has notified the International Maritime Organisation of the Code and its application to pleasure vessels engaged in trade as an equivalent arrangement under the provisions of Article 8 of the International Convention on Load Lines, 1966, Regulation I-5 of the International Convention on Safety of Life at Sea, and Article 9 of the International Convention on Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978 as amended. Reference can be made to IMO Circular Letter No. 2937, dated 13 January 2009.

  1.5 The Code sets required standards of safety and pollution prevention which are appropriate to the size of the vessel. The standards applied are either set by the relevant international conventions or equivalent standards where it is not reasonable or practicable to comply. Provision is made within the Code to add any specific national requirements within a National Annex.

An Administration may consider a specific alternative equivalent standard to any standard required by the Code. Applications which justify either an alternative or exemption from a specific requirement of the Code can be made to the Administration.

  1.6 The Code has been developed by an industry wide group with the express intention of setting pollution prevention and safety standards which identify with the specific needs of vessels in commercial use for sport and pleasure. The Code was reviewed and revised in 2012 to bring it up to date and reflect the needs of the industry. The standards adopted are judged to be at least equivalent in their effect to those required by the international conventions which apply to a particular vessel.

The membership of the industry wide groups that developed and revised the Code are listed in Annex 1.

  1.7 Compliance with the standards required by the Code will entitle a vessel to be issued with the certification required by the international conventions applicable to the vessel, upon satisfactory completion of the corresponding surveys and inspections.

The certificates demanded by the international conventions which apply to the vessels covered by the Code are summarised in Section 28.

  1.8 When equipment manufactured in accordance with a recognised British, European or International standard is required by the Code, the Administration may accept existing equipment which can be shown to be of an equivalent standard and which does not increase the risk to the ship or its crew and passengers. When such equipment is replaced, the replacement should conform to the standard required by the Code.

  1.9 For vessels entitled to fly the flag of a Member State of the European Union, the Commission of the European Communities' general mutual recognition clause should be accepted. The clause states:

Any requirement for goods or materials to comply with a specified standard should be satisfied by compliance with:

• .1 a relevant standard or code of practice of a national standards body or equivalent body of a Member State of the European Community; or

• .2 any relevant international standard recognised for use in any Member State of the European Community; or

• .3 a relevant specification acknowledged for use as a standard by a public authority of any Member State of the European Community; or

• .4 traditional procedures of manufacture of a Member State of the European Community, Turkey, where these are the subject of a written technical description sufficiently detailed to permit assessment of the goods or materials for the use specified; or

• .5 a specification sufficiently detailed to permit assessment for goods or materials of an innovative nature (or subject to innovative processes of manufacture such that they cannot comply with a recognised standard or specification) and which fulfil the purpose provided by the specified standard;

provided that the proposed standard, code of practice, specification or technical description provides, in use, equivalent levels of safety, suitability and fitness for purpose. Due attention should be paid to the requirements of the Marine Equipment Directive.

  1.10 It is recognised that the Code may be required to be revised in the light of experience gained in its application. Section 3.4 makes provision for this.

  1.11 It is recommended that pleasure vessels comply with the standards of the Code.