GPS Tracking is Helping Marinas and Boat Rental Businesses Across the Country Thrive

The value of marine GPS tracking technology in mitigating risks for marinas and rental businesses can’t be overstated. Companies like Rastrac are helping these industries avoid higher insurance costs while enhancing safety and operational efficiency.

“Insurance carriers are more apt to provide reduced insurance costs to marina insureds who use GPS tracking, as it can decrease their risk overall,” said Michael Wells, the chief strategy and marketing officer for Rastrac, which is based in Texas and has provided GPS tracking solutions to businesses for more than 30 years. “Enhancing safety is done through controlling how watercraft are used and providing visual and audible alerts when watercraft are being used in dangerous areas.”

Fleet Protection
Rastrac Automatic Location software, with its notifications and alerts, has thousands of users worldwide and can help fleets in nearly any industry develop a competitive advantage. The software has been tracking more than $2.5 billion in assets around the world, in everything from public safety and construction fleets to heavy equipment rentals, municipalities and marinas.

With this marine GPS tracking, users can prevent unauthorized use of their vessels by setting geofences and monitoring activity; receiving instant alerts for hazardous areas, excessive speed or potential theft; verifying responsible operation to demonstrate compliance with safety guidelines; and quickly recovering stolen or lost watercraft, reducing claims and downtime.

The technology informs users about the health of watercraft batteries and lets them know when watercraft are returning to the dock, allowing marina staff to greet renters in a timely manner. It can also help reduce propeller damage by controlling where watercraft are used, keeping vessels out of hazardous areas and minimizing lost revenue.

“Should watercraft leave an operational area, Rastrac can notify recipients via text, email or both simultaneously and instantly when an area has been left. Rastrac receives frequent updates from watercraft while they are moving so current location can be monitored in real time, post-theft,” Wells said. “And insurers know that having GPS tracking ensures their insureds are aware of how their assets are being operated.”

Boat Rental Protection
Marinas often utilize GPS tracking solutions for boat rentals. Bill Gauspohl, the general manager of A.C. VIP Marina in Texas, uses the Rastrac technology for the facility’s boat rental business, which has helped protect boats, boaters and the marina.

“When we first were approached with the concept of GPS tracking, I was very hesitant about inquiring. I figured that it was just someone else trying to sell us an addition that we would just pay for. We signed up with Rastrac after doing some research on cost and use,” Gauspohl said. “Rastrac has helped us with time management and cost management. Since installing the tracking devices, we have been able to track incoming and outgoing rental boats to help our customers with their rentals. It sends us valuable information as to what way the boat is heading or how fast it is moving. This helps in the case of a boat that may be late returning to help the next customer.”

One of the most important features of the tracking system, Gauspohl said, is that it helps the marina instantly locate a boat that is in distress or disabled.
“Our lake is very large, and there are many different coves that boats can tie up in. Tracking them allows us to send a response to any problems that we may have,” Gauspohl said. “We do mention that we are tracking the boats to our customers, and we remind them that this is not to track their travel but to give them peace of mind that we can locate them when or if they have a problem.”

Another benefit of GPS tracking is that it can calculate the amount of time an engine is running and helps keep up with maintenance, potentially eliminating costly expenses. It also gives the company a record that can be used in the resale of boats.

“One thing that was made really simple for us was the ability for our rental facilities to install and remove these devices without any special tools or experience,” Gauspohl said. “We don’t have any big costs in using repair shops to accomplish this.”

The tracker even sends a signal if a boat is moving and should not be, or if the company’s geofences are set up and a boat exceeds the preassigned boundaries.

“We have seen an increase in the amount of damage that we have been able to collect by reviewing the tracks that the boats took. Damages can be charged according to the schedule shown to them in the rental agreement. A picture is worth a thousand words and dollars,” Gauspohl said. “If I had a chance to do it all over again, I would have opted in for tracking much earlier than we did. It is truly a tool that will pay for itself and might even save a life.”