Recreational craft

Directive 2013/53/EU
Content Overview:

 What is the Recreational Craft Directive?

 Product Scope
 Definitions
 Exemptions
 Essential Requirements
 Declaration of conformity
 Technical Documentation
 Owner’s manual
 Labelling requirements
What is the Recreational Craft Directive?

 The Recreational Craft Directive sets requirements for designing and

manufacturing motor and sailing recreational craft.
 It covers requirements such as those pertaining to a craft’s visibility,
stability, and buoyancy. It also covers noise pollution and limits the
following engine exhaust emissions
Product Scope

The directive covers the following types of crafts and components:

 Recreational crafts
 Personal watercrafts
 Propulsion engines installed on – or intended for – watercrafts
 Components listed in Annex II
 Fuel tanks meant for fixed installations
 Ignition-protected equipment for inboard petrol engines
 Prefabricated port lights
 Start-in-gear protection devices for outboard engines
 Steering wheels
Definitions

 Article 3 of the directive defines a “recreational craft” as any type of

watercraft meant for leisure and sports purposes, with a hull length from 2.5
to 24 meters (excluding personal watercrafts).
 It also defines a “personal watercraft” as a leisure and sport watercraft that:
 a. Use propulsion engines with water jet pumps
 b. Has a hull length of a maximum of 4 meters, and
 c. It is operated by one or more people that are “sitting, standing or kneeling
on” the hull (rather than staying within the hull confines)
Exemptions

 The directive does not apply to products such as the following:

 Watercrafts for racing
 Surfboards
 Amphibious vehicles
 Submersibles
Essential Requirements

 Manufacturers should design and construct their watercraft to ensure they are safe and operate as
intended. As such, products covered by the directive must meet essential requirements
established in Annex I.
 These requirements ensure that recreational crafts do not endanger persons, property, or the
environment when properly used and maintained per the craft’s intended purpose. They include:
 a. General requirements (e.g. owner’s manual, watercraft identification)
 b. Integrity and structural requirements (e.g.buoyancy, flotation, and stability)
 c. Handling characteristics – A watercraft’s handling characteristics should be compatible with the
watercraft propulsion engine’s output
 d. Installation requirements
 e. Propulsion engine identification (e.g. marking requirements)
 f. Exhaust emission requirements (e.g. exhaust emission limits of propulsion engines)
Declaration of Conformity
 Importers and manufacturers of recreational watercraft must draft a Declaration of Conformity stating that
their products comply with the requirements established in Annex I of the directive.
 They must submit the Declaration of Conformity according to the format in Annex IV, which includes the
following pieces of information:
 a. Product, batch, type, or serial number
 b. Manufacturer’s name and address
 c. A statement declaring that the importer or manufacturer is responsible for issuing the Declaration of
Conformity
 d. Identity (and photograph, where appropriate) of the recreational craft
 e. A statement declaring the craft’s conformity with the relevant harmonized EU legislation (e.g., the
aforementioned directive)
 f. References to relevant harmonized standards or other technical specifications to which conformity is claimed
 g. Where applicable, a statement identifying which notified body carried out the described intervention and
issued the certificate
 h. Identification of signee authorized to sign on the manufacturer’s behalf
 i. Additional information, as necessary
 j. “Signed for and on behalf of” statement, with the place and date of issue, name, function, and the
submitter’s signature
Technical Documentation
 The directive mandates importers and manufacturers to provide the relevant authorities with 
technical documentation. According to Annex IX, technical documentation should include the
following:
 a. General descriptions of the product
 b. Conceptual designs, manufacturing drawings
 c. Information to understand the product’s operation
 d. List of harmonized standards
 e. Results of design calculations and examinations
 f. Stability and buoyancy test reports per Annex I, Part A, Points 3.2 and 3.3
 g. Exhaust and sound emissions test reports proving compliance with Annex I, Parts B and C,
Sections 2 and 1, respectively
Owner’s Manual

 Manufacturers of recreational crafts must ensure that their products come

with an owner’s manual that contains instructions and safety information in
commonly-understood languages.
 The manual should include instructions concerning:
 Set up (installation)
 Maintenance
 Regular operation
 Risk prevention
 Risk management
 Maximum rated engine power
Watercraft builder’s plate
Watercraft manufacturers must permanently affix a watercraft builder’s plate to their products. We
list below the information they must affix to the plate.
 CE Marking
 The watercraft manufacturer must ensure that the CE marking:
 a. Is readable and affixed clearly and permanently onto the watercraft builder’s plate
 b. Is followed by the notified body’s identification number (if relevant)
 c. Is followed by a pictogram or mark that specifies a special risk or use (if relevant)
 Manufacturer information
 The watercraft manufacturer must include a contact address on the builder’s plate, as well as
one of the following:
 Manufacturer’s name
 Registered trade name
 Registered trade mark
Other information
 In addition to the above, the manufacturer must include the following information on the
builder’s plate:
 a. The watercraft’s design category
 b. The maximum recommended load (excluding the weight of full, fixed tanks)
 c. The manufacturer’s recommended number of persons per the watercraft’s design
Watercraft identification
The directive mandates the manufacturer to mark the watercraft with an identification number
that includes the following information:
 Manufacturer’s country code
 Manufacturer’s unique code (assigned by EU Member State national authority)
 Unique serial number
 Month and year of watercraft production
 Model year
 The above information can be used to uniquely identify each craft.