A cautionary tale from over the North Sea Avid followers of the Sailtales site may have noticed my account of moving Gwylan our Westerly Seahawk from Portishead to Terneuzen in The Netherlands. Here follows a cautionary notes for those of you predisposed to bring your boats to the land of Tulips, windmills and a mean spirited Customs Service. We've been in The Netherlands since Easter and enjoyed sundry outings in the Westerschelte dodging large container ships and aggressive barges. Anyway on our trip over we fuelled up in Brighton, expecting a tank load of diesel to be sufficient to see us through the rest of the journey, with a suitable safety margin. This was of course red diesel' because that's what you can buy in marinas in the UK. Remember this it may be significant as the story unfolds. The truth is that the trusty Volvo is much less thirsty than that and we still have a bit less than half a tank left We arrived in Terneuzen on Easter Sunday, declared ourselves to a very relaxed immigration service and went about our business. Since this last Monday was a public holiday Pentecost, Whit Monday and Tuesday is Sarah's day off we decided to make a little trip down the Schelte to visit Vlissingen [ Flushing] Wonderful sail down and pleasant little marina. Got into the marina, after we worked out that the marina is run by the café on the pier and they do not have a radio. They claim to keep a lookout' but you can always telephone them. The number is in the almanac. Vlissingen is a charming town with all the nice things you might look for in a port of call. We enjoyed a pleasant meal, a good nights sleep and woke ready to face the day. Tide times suggested that we would be best waiting for the evening tide and that would mean a departure around 20:00. So time to explore the countryside, take a bus to Middleburg even more charming. Wander back to the boat have an early meal and get ready to leave. The tide was turning there was a brisk sailors 5 over the outgoing tide that made it look a bit bumpy. Make contact with the café and the footbridge is closed and we are free to leave. Off we go on a brisk broad reach and a following sea. As we get further up the channel things get better and we end sailing home under full canvas' or whatever they make sails from these days. Beautiful sunset behind us and as we approach our home port there is the silhouette of a sturdy sea boat behind us We make sure we are well clear of his track and start putting sail away ready to enter the outer harbour. He goes ahead of us and as we pass we can see it is a Customs boat. They frequently come into Terneuzen to drop off or pick up from the old ferry quay. We enter the harbour and he is tied up on the quay and waving a signalling light and calling us to come alongside. As a good citizen I draw alongside and we make fast. They announce themselves as 'Her Majesties Customs' which sounds a bit odd, until you realise that the Netherlands have a queen as much an institution as ours. Anyway, they board, make small talk ask about passports and if we have anything to declare. We oblige with papers and volunteer the contents of our drinks cabinet. The conversation moves around to the subject of our diesel. Yes, we have diesel on board, yes we bought it in England, yes it is 'red'. Then things get interesting. Did we know it was illegal to use red diesel in a yacht? No, but we did know that you cannot buy red diesel' in The Netherlands. We have broken the law and a higher authority will have to be consulted. And can they have the boat papers please! An hour goes by, the diesel is sampled and is as red as it comes. Do we have a receipt for the diesel we bought in Brighton? The tank is measured and they return to their boat for further consultation. I'm invited to join them on their boat and told that we have broken the law! Particularly Article 9 of the Customs Code. The higher authority that they cited earlier has decided that this is punishable with a fine, based on the capacity of the tank of the boat. The fine is €4,53 per litre of tank capacity not how much diesel you actually have. We have a calculated tank capacity of 170 litres and that will cost us €770! That's £525 in used beer vouchers. In order to be released we have to pay that now! We will get a receipt. It's now about 11:30 and the end of the month. We suggest that we do not carry that kind of money and probably do not have that in the bank anyway. They are most accommodating and offer to escort us to the nearest cash machine so we can try and withdraw the money. This we agree to do. The idly voiced suggestion of seizing the vessel tends to focus the mind on the likely additional cost of getting it released again. So, in a scene straight from Kafka, at nearly midnight we are wandering through this deserted Dutch town escorted by 2 armed customs officers to the cash machine. Tony Blair, eat your heart out, bet you'd like to be able to do that. Not a local yob, but a sincere honest taxpayer being mugged by bureaucracy! No change there then really. Between us, Sarah and I, we push the overdraft limit and get out enough to pay our fine. We return together to the boats, hand over the cash, get a receipt but are refused a copy of the statement that I had willingly signed for the officers. We are told that they' will write to us in due course about the matter. We all shake hands and we are free to continue the 150 metres to our mooring. Throughout the whole affair the officers were affable, pleasant and polite. They resolutely refused to explain how we were expected to arrive from the UK without red diesel. It was suggested that we could buy it from a petrol station in jerry cans' and transport it to the boat the idea of lugging a tank-full, 30 five litre jerry cans, from the nearest petrol station didn't seem to phase them. Also they could not accept that it had been legally purchased in the UK and was part of the manifest of the boat and not for sale. And that we understood that it would be replaced with locally obtained diesel when necessary. Our suggestion that they were on a racing cert' with every boat flying a red ensign that they stopped was greeted with a shrug and the assertion that they had stopped one British boat with legal diesel. Lesson learned: I'm left looking at a hole in my boating budget A feeling that the whole thing is not fair. But who do I complain to? How we can warn as many people as possible not to fall into this trap? Rocyn Comment from: annon

I can't believe that this is correct as the fuel was bopught legally in thew UK and as such is now in freee circulation. As such the customs officers have no right to fine you. Instruct a Dutch lawer. Comment from: John Hamer

Typical EU why oh why are we there, their fishing boats operate in our waters but our lads are not allowed to fish, Why? BECUASE WE ARE IDIOTS and play ball, while the rest of europe puts up two fingers to Brussels, Please get us out of here. Comment from: SY Obi-Wan

Standard stuff. IMPORTANT: ALWAYS KEEP ONE RECEIPT from the UK You need to be able to prove that the red diesel in the tank was bought legitimately. So you need a recent receipt from a UK or a Belgian gas station (or another place where red is legal). In the story, the owner was asked if he had a receipt, and it is not clear whether they actually had one, I assume not. So this is not a case of dutch authorities robbing the UK sailor, but rather the UK sailor failing to be able to prove that the red diesel is legit. What alledgely happens is that Dutch mobo's cross into belgium at the start of the season, fill up with red, and then fill up with red for the rest of the year with jerrycans (don't let the customs guys spot you). When the inspection comes and finds traces of red in the tank, you point to the receipt. Of course that story wont fly if they compare your log to your mileage Extract from letter received from MP 12-7-07

Thank you for your letter of 5 June to Dawn Primarolo enclosing correspondence from your former constituent, ******** about his recent dealings with Dutch Customs over rebated gas oil ("red diesel") used in his boat. I am replying as Minister responsible. Since receiving your letter, Treasury officials have been in touch with their colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, who in turn have contacted the Dutch Customs authorities. I understand that this matter has now been resolved. As you may know, the European. Commission recently rejected requests from the UK and some other Member States to renew the derogation from the EU Energy Products Directive which allowed the use of red diesel in private pleasure craft. The derogation expired at the end of 2006. However, we have announced in the UK that we will allow private pleasure craft to continue to use red diesel until November 2008, while we discuss with interested parties the best way to implement the new regime. The Dutch Customs authorities have now been made aware of this and have introduced new guidance for their Customs officers with immediate effect. UK boat owners who can prove, by submitting an appropriate receipt, that they purchased the red diesel in their tank in the UK within the previous twelve months, will be allowed to use it in Dutch waters. This guidance will remain effective until 1 November 2008. I also understand that UK boat owners who have been fined since 1 January for using red diesel may appeal to the Dutch authorities to have the levy/fine refunded. They should write to: Management, Douane Zuid P0 Box 6470 5600 HL EINDHOVEN More comments on this story at www.ybw.com/forums Comment on this article Tell us your story