Whether you love a spot of fishing, a gentle ride up the river with friends or a long trip on a whopper of a canal boat, we have a few points on safety you might want to hear about. Safety is one of the most important things you need to consider when you’re buying a boat, so if yours doesn’t have all of the necessary safety equipment you may want to consider getting the following:

 

VHF radio

 

A VHF radio with good receiving capability and basic transmit is extremely important. It can also be used to communicate with fellow boaters, whilst it can be portable or fixed. A quick call on this radio could save your life, and it’s quite cheap buy. If you want something a little cheaper, walkie talkies can be ideal, just make sure they’re at a good reach to your fellow boater ahead or behind.

 

Life jackets

 

Even strong swimmers can struggle in currents, and yes they do exist on rivers. They’re extremely important and you should never ride you boat without one.

 

Whistle

A whistle is a simple buy, but if you’ve seen The Titanic you’ll know just how important it can be. Okay, we’re not saying you’re going to crash into an iceberg, but it’s definitely worth having in the case of an emergency.