Your Dollars and Good Sense
I heard an interesting, cautionary tale at the Newport charter show from longtime broker DJ Parker, who runs her own company in Florida called Neptune Group Yachting.
DJ’s story was about APA, which stands for Advance Provisioning Allowance. This is the money you pay on top of the charter yacht’s base rate for things like food, fuel, marina fees, and the like. You make an estimated payment before the charter starts (hence the word “advance”) and then settle up with the yacht at the end of the charter depending on whether your APA covered the actual costs or not.
DJ had a repeat client who enjoyed a lovely charter yacht vacation but told her the final tally on the APA seemed a little high. She asked the client whether he’d like her to look over the captain’s bookkeeping, and he said yes.
So she did–right down to the penny–and found out that her client had been inadvertently charged for some fuel expenses that she had negotiated out of his APA before the charter even began.
DJ contacted the yacht’s management company, and the problem was immediately corrected. In this case, that meant several thousand dollars worth of a refund for DJ’s charter client.
This is one of those stories that reminds me, yet again, about the importance of working with a reputable charter broker. Remember: The best brokers in the business do a heck of a lot more than just ask you what dates you want to travel. They continue to look out for you well after the charter is completed.