Skippers won’t face smartphone-handling fines for Queensland digital licence checks

Rules around smartphone use out on the water are very different on land, where car drivers are banned from holding smartphones while behind the wheel.

It means that if the Queensland-based driver of a car wants to show a police officer their digital licence, they must ask for permission to allow them to grab and use the smartphone or face a $1161 fine and the loss of four demerit points for acting rashly.

In contrast, there are no specific rules banning a skipper from holding or using a smartphone while out on the water.

However, a Maritime Safety Queensland spokesperson told boatsales that the Transport Operations Marine Safety Act and Regulation, which covers what a recreational boat’s skipper can and cannot do, would apply.

That means a skipper must “maintain a proper lookout and is responsible for the safety of those on board”.

“If an incident occurred and was then subsequently investigated and the master was found not to have exercised due diligence, then they would receive an infringement notice,” the spokesman said.

Under the internationally recognised COLREGs – the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea – anyone who fails to keep a proper lookout could be liable for fines of up to $77,000 or a year in jail.

Queensland recently ended a three-year trial of digital car and boat licences and earlier this month made the new technology available to all the state’s residents via the Queensland Digital Licence smartphone app.

Smartphones are becoming increasingly important on boats as engine and electronics makers integrate them so they act as an important link.

Users can now do everything from monitoring the engine’s performance and troubleshooting problems down to viewing charts and plotting a course that the autopilot function will navigate by automatically calculating a route based on the vessel’s draft.

Technology yet to roll out in Australia, such as the Avikus Neuboat system that can autonomously dock a boat in a marina without any input from the skipper, relies heavily on the user having a smartphone or similar device to help it decide on where to berth.

However, while smartphone technology is being embraced on one side of boating, a smartphone is still not considered an essential piece of kit when it comes to safety on the water.

Water users are encouraged to carry a smartphone that they can use to contact Triple Zero (000), but the device is not seen as a substitute for other, more traditional and analogue ways of calling for help on the water.

Various Australian marine rescue groups do use purpose-built apps to let boaters log on and off digitally. The apps provide rescue services with contact details so they can phone users to check that those who have not logged off via the app have made it safely back on shore.

Other smartphone-based apps, such as Deckee, can even offer support for rescue services, mapping out the route taken by a boat that uses its service to give rescuers a big head-start on launching a search for a missing boat.