Taking ownership: Advice for overseas gardiennage

Will Bruton on overseas gardiennage, otherwise known as handing over responsibility to others for marine servicing including maintenance.

Pass any marina in the Balearics, and you’ll see yachts with a notice on the guardrail detailing who is responsible for their—usually highly polished—condition. Overseas gardiennage, or handing over responsibility to someone else, is commonplace in the Mediterranean. From a washdown once a month, to a recorded maintenance schedule that looks great when the yacht is sold on, it’s something that’s becoming increasingly popular.

Rory Gillard of Minerva Technical Palma and Pete Stirling of PSA Prime Marine UK are both ex-Clipper Round the World skippers who now run overseas gardiennage businesses as part of their wider marine service operations. Collectively they have hundreds of thousands of miles’ experience and a wealth of yacht maintenance knowledge.

“Gardiennage [or guardiennage] is a French word meaning to protect or take care of, and it does hint at the level of responsibility involved,” explains Gillard. “As an industry it has grown as owners have less time to look after their yachts and as they look for them to be in top working order when turn up to sail. Yachts have also got far more complicated.

“In Palma many of the yachts you see in the marina will be owned by sailors who live abroad and come to the island specifically to sail. Over time, more trust has been placed in businesses like ours to make that work and make it as easy as possible.”

Overseas gardiennage is a big responsibility

When owners entrust their yacht to gardiennage they are also ensuring someone is close by when things don’t go right. When a storm hit Mallorca last summer, companies like Gillard’s found themselves looking after yachts in their care with a forecast of over 45 knots due to hit the island. “In bad weather we check boats morning and night: lines, fenders, watertight integrity, bilges, batteries. If necessary moving to an alternative berth beforehand to reduce the chance of any damage occurring,” he explains.

Most businesses offer standardised packages, from a basic washdown once a month to much more. Pete and Su Stirling’s PSA Prime Marine has launched a service they have called Prime Maintenance, which gives owners different levels of service with pricing based upon the length of boat. “We launched it this way to make pricing clear and set out our way of going about delivering for clients; it’s important customers know exactly what we are doing for the money. We can do as much or as little for owners as they ask, but they benefit from being able to turn up to their boat and go, knowing that it’s in great working order. We can even provision in advance.

“A recent client came to us with a 12-month-old Jeanneau, so the boat is in good order and they want to keep it that way. We now provide both gardiennage and ongoing maintenance services, such as the annual engine service.”

Gillard explains, “Most of the yachts we have under gardiennage are 12m to 15m, above that size we offer more comprehensive management. It is important to understand that gardiennage is not the same as employing a full-time captain; occasionally customers do make that mistake.

“We go above and beyond for our clients and often find ourselves helping on the phone when they are out enjoying their yacht and something isn’t working, but we can’t provide the same level of service as a full time captain would.”

For larger yachts, with more complex systems, gardiennage companies will often build the manufacturers’ service schedule into an agreed plan. “Seacocks need to be worked regularly on all yachts, but for those with systems like air conditioning, a watermaker or genset, regularly running up systems is really important,” Gillard says.

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Getting it right

Andrew Allner has been using gardiennage services for over 15 years, keeping a Swan 53 in the South of France. More recently he has engaged PSA Prime Marine to look after a Swan 38 he is purchasing in the UK.

“Here in St Tropez some form of gardiennage is mandatory, which is sensible. When the Mistral blows in the winter you need someone looking after the boat – as a bare minimum, checking the fenders and lines.”

Finding the right people, or person, Allner explains, is crucial. “Over the years we have had mixed experiences, but it has certainly become more professionalised as an industry. It is key to have one point of central contact. As you build trust, they are the link between you and your boat, but also the connection to their contacts and trades in the area.

“They need to know how to sail and to be a conscientious character; Pete is exactly that, he can deal with people and has high standards. We race the Swan and you are placing a lot of trust in people to oversee or undertake work to a high standard because you can’t see it being done yourself.

“When we switch from cruising to racing mode, we leave it to the gardiennage company to change the sails, take excess kit off and get her ready, meaning we can just turn up and enjoy a 600-mile offshore race with little time wasted.”

Jonathan Beeston and his family have had their Oyster 62 in gardiennage in Palma since she was commissioned. “We worked for a long time with a one-man operation. He was great but he retired and we have since had mixed experiences with a couple of larger companies.

“You need someone who has attention to detail and communicates well. If you’re a thousand miles away they are your eyes on the boat so they need to keep tabs on more long-term maintenance things that you might need to do as well as what’s on the list you have agreed.

“We have turned up before to find things not working – like the fridge, which is important when you’re about to go sailing in the Med for two weeks. A good operation will be checking diligently and running systems, then thinking beyond that. Does the capping rail need revarnishing this year? What condition are the halyards in?

“Our Oyster 62 is now an older boat, so pre-empting things that might need taking care of becomes even more important and, as trust grows, you are
more likely to let them take care of them.”

Gardiennage checklist

Passing over responsibility for your yacht to someone else demands a high degree of trust.

Rory Gillard (Minerva Technical minervatechnical.co.uk) explains what you should look for in a gardiennage company:

■ Ask for some references from current clients. Companies come and go.
■ Reputation is everything. Check it out.
■ Expect a clear pricing structure that covers what will be undertaken and when.
■ Ask which services will be undertaken in-house and which will be subcontracted.
■ An established gardiennage business will have good connections to local trades, but it’s important to be clear who is doing what, particularly if the company becomes involved in overseeing any work on board.

What it costs

■ PSA Prime Marine (psaprimemarine.com) offers gardiennage from £5.95 per foot, which includes:
■ Check and adjustment of mooring lines and fenders.
■ Open hatches to air the vessel.
■ Check battery charging and shore power status.
■ Check bilges and run bilge pumps.
■ Run generator and engine(s), including in and out of gear.
■ Operate steering and trim tab systems.
■ Flush toilets and run freshwater systems to prevent them from smelling.
■ Work seacocks to stop them seizing.
■ Wash down deck/hull and chamois windows, hatches and brightwork.
■ Additional checks of mooring lines and fenders when bad weather is forecast.
■ After every inspection a report is sent to the owner along with photos and videos detailing any areas of concern.

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