Check the outstanding work before setting your cruising plans

Combine work left over from last season with newly identified needs. Record each item’s current position, relevant provider and outstanding response.

If the owner, captain and team hold separate lists, review them together. The discussion may reveal duplicate follow-up or a task without a clear owner.

Use manufacturer instructions, available maintenance records and relevant specialist assessments to review service and inspection needs. Ask providers what access is needed and whether a task depends on other work. Keep dated items on their own list: liferaft service, extinguisher checks, EPIRB battery and registration, flare expiry.

Arrange the appropriate specialist input where a technical assessment is required. A general seasonal checklist cannot replace an assessment of the particular yacht.

Discuss how service visits, parts requirements or yard work relate to the cruising plan. If a task is delayed, assess the implications with the captain and relevant specialist.

Record who is waiting for the answer to an open question alongside the intended date. This makes pending decisions visible in the discussion before departure.

Identify which operating procedures, maintenance information and emergency arrangements the team needs to review. New crew members or a technical change may require further explanation.

Organise any training or authorised checks needed at this stage. Departure readiness calls for an assessment by the people responsible for the yacht’s condition and operation.

Review completed work and outstanding needs separately before departure. Each open item should have a person responsible for follow-up and a defined next step.