Mooring audits
Mooring audits help Transport for NSW manage the 23,000 private and commercial mooring sites throughout NSW. Find out about the audit process.
Why moorings are audited
Transport for NSW conducts a state-wide audit of moorings. Mooring audits take place each year between March and September.
The audit program aims to:
- reduce salvage costs of vessels that sink
- safeguard the marine environment
- increase mooring compliance and remove mooring minders
- improve water safety and access, and potentially reduce wait list times for moorings in some areas
- protect customers from purchasing non-compliant vessels on the secondary resale market
- register non-compliant vessels and alert potential buyers to any outstanding mooring issues when transferring ownership.
A mooring apparatus failure can result in a vessel coming adrift and damaging:
- other moored vessels
- maritime infrastructure
- the environment
- other boating users.
A poorly maintained vessel can sink, polluting the waterways and the environment and become a hazard to navigation.
Before an audit is conducted, a letter will be sent to the registered mooring licence holder advising them that an audit of their mooring and vessel has been scheduled for the following month.
The letter contains information on what needs to be done to make the vessel and mooring apparatus compliant with the mooring licence conditions, along with details of the mooring licence conditions.
The audit will be conducted by a Boating Safety Officer, and a follow-up letter will be sent with the result of the audit.
If your mooring and vessel are fully compliant, and Proof of Service was provided as requested, you will receive a thank you letter, and no further action is required.
Download the mooring audit factsheet for details on how the audits work.
- Read the conditions for private mooring licences.
- Read the conditions for commercial mooring licences.
If your mooring or vessel are non-compliant, a letter will be issued listing the defect/s that you must rectify. This may include an official caution or a penalty notice.
Mooring licence holders will be given time to fix the non-compliances or remove the vessel and give up the mooring.
If you receive a non-compliant letter, you may contact the Boating Safety Officer to develop a 'plan of action' if you can’t complete the repairs in the time required. It may be because you cannot book a contractor to complete the works in the timeframe required as they have no available appointments.
The plan of action outlines what needs to be repaired and when. The plan will take into account the number of slipways and resources in your local area.
You will have to begin repairs within 14 days of agreeing to the plan. When the repair works are completed, the mooring licence holder needs to provide proof of service from either the qualified contractor who did the work or the slipway owner. This can be sent to psaudit@transport.nsw.gov.au.
If you refuse all requests to carry out the repair works on your mooring or vessel and it has been identified as unseaworthy, you will be fined for non-compliance and receive a notice to remove your vessel.
It is a condition of your private mooring licence that the mooring apparatus must be kept in good condition and serviced every 12 months, with proof of mooring service produced on request. It is a requirement to provide a proof of service by the date notified in the pre-audit letter. Email the proof of service to psaudit@transport.nsw.gov.au
If you have had your mooring serviced by a mooring contractor, you must provide an invoice or receipt from the contractor showing:
- the contractor’s name and ABN/ACN
- the mooring ID
- the date the mooring was serviced.
If you have serviced your mooring yourself, you must complete and provide a proof of service statutory declaration.
For further information you can contact Transport about your audit by email or phone:
13 12 36 and select option 2.