I can't thank Colin and his team enough for their efforts and their success in getting my boat released from Customs after it was impounded when they came fishing for VAT payment and I could not prove it had been paid. My boat is over 25 years old and has been in Portugal for many years, but when it came to producing the right papers I didn’t have them. As my boat had been UK registered on both part 1 and III Colin traced back the history of my boats ownership, through his many contacts in the industry and arranged to get proof of UK VAT payment from HMRC even though I never had it when I bought the boat 10 years ago. Thank you CWMC

Colin’s assistance with the sale of a client’s boat was hugely appreciated, especially as we are not local and had no prior knowledge of the vessel. He collected and prepared all of the papers to deal with the transfer of ownership and was always happy to answer any questions that we had. He also assisted in arranging insurance and other matters that were unrelated to the transfer. Colin showed a detailed understanding of the particular legal aspects of boat ownership - an essential job in ensuring that you have good title to such a valuable asset.

Since we are in Sweden and the boat was being sold in the UK, there were a lot of issues to solve - interpretation of the contract, understanding the procedure of buying a boat in UK, handling the survey and sea trial not speaking of a lot of practical problems as we decided to have the boat  ashore in UK during the winter 2011/12. During all these steps, Colin Watts has guided and provided us with support as well as answered emails and telephone calls in a timely manner. His engagement in the deal and his dealing with the practical issues has been far beyond what we could of expected.

We thank you Colin very much for your very competent service both in the search for the right vessel, as well as your very good and pleasant service all the way both during the negotiations. Also post-sale, your knowledge of local matters,  as well as your assistance and advise were of great help In our preparations for sailing from Portugal to Norway (about 1800 nautical miles).

 Without your attention to detail, and full oversight, the work related to change of flag and ownership – would no doubt have been a tedious task for a new owner.

 Should any of my friends wish to buy a vessel from abroad, you can rest assured that I shall tell them of Your excellent services.

"I have had the pleasure of working with Colin in many capacities for over 10 years. During this time I have witnessed his industry leadership, dedication and professionalism. In recent years as a Council member on The Yacht Harbour Association I have seen Colin inject a great deal of logical, sound advice in to the organisation. He has always remained professional in his communications and his ability to influence decisions thus commanding the respect he deserves from fellow members of the Association. As a friend, I have always found in willing to assist in many areas outside of his core business and any advice received from Colin is without exception a valuable contribution in solving any industry challenges."

"Dear Colin, we wish to thank you sincerely for your kind and very helpful assistance when we visited the UK to view the Grand Banks Aleutian 64. Your professionalism, support, good humour and ability to liaise in a respectful manner with both seller and buyer made a positive outcome for us all. Your suggestions and assistance right the way through the negotiations to the eventual purchase and your help in the delivery of the boat to the docks for onward shipment to New Zealand was outstanding and incredibly appreciated. We would have no hesitation in recommending you to anybody here in New Zealand. We look forward to being able to share some good Kiwi hospitality with you here in New Zealand should you get the opportunity to come and visit our shores".

"Colin Watts’ help & assistance during the sale of my sister’s Grand Banks 36 was simply excellent – over & above the call of duty. He kept the potential buyers happy & progressed the sale forward in spite of some sloppy foot-dragging from the boatyard where the yacht was kept. He finalised all the details of the survey etc totally painlessly & took care of everything down to the final exchange in a thoroughly professional manner".

We have known and dealt with Colin Watts for over 25 years. During that time we have bought three boats from him, sold one and are in the process of selling a second. As Colin would no doubt agree, we are the most demanding of customers. Our requirements on the new boats we have bought have been very detailed with many non-standard requests. During all our transactions we have been treated with the utmost care and courtesy, with nothing being too much trouble. Above all, we have been looked after in many ways over the years, not just during the nice bits whilst buying a boat, but in the darker days when sometimes not everything goes to plan.We are passionate boating people, but would not consider buying or selling a boat without close consultation with Colin