Marine Surveyor & Boat Inspection in Corpus Christi, TX
Subtropical Gulf Coast climate.
For marine surveyor & boat inspection, the service area covers roughly 110 miles from central Corpus Christi.
Common reasons to call
- You are buying a boat and want to know what you are actually buying before the money moves
- An insurance carrier will not write or renew a policy without a current condition and value survey
- A lender requires a survey before financing the purchase
- The boat was damaged and a claim needs an independent assessment of cause and extent
- A hull sounds soft in places or the deck flexes underfoot and nobody can say how bad it is
- A steel or aluminum hull needs thickness readings to know how much metal is left
- You are selling and want a documented condition report before a buyer's surveyor writes one
- A storm passed and the vessel needs an assessment for insurance or for peace of mind
Typical work
- Pre purchase condition and value survey, including sea trial and a haul out to see below the waterline
- Insurance condition and value survey written for what an underwriter actually needs to see
- Damage survey after a grounding, collision, fire, or storm, documenting cause and extent
- Ultrasonic thickness readings on steel and aluminum hulls to measure remaining metal
- Moisture testing and percussion sounding on fiberglass hulls, decks, and coring
- Appraisal and valuation for financing, estate, donation, or dispute
Typical turnaround
A survey day is usually the inspection, the sea trial, and the short haul, and the written report normally follows within several days. Coastal Bend surveyors book out further in spring buying season and get completely consumed after a named storm, when claim work takes priority over transactions. Yard availability for the haul out is often the real constraint on scheduling, not the surveyor.
Materials and equipment
- Moisture meters for laminate, coring, and deck saturation
- Ultrasonic thickness gauges for metal hulls and plating
- Percussion tools for sounding fiberglass and locating delamination
- Electrical test equipment for AC and DC systems, bonding, and stray current corrosion checks
- Borescopes and photographic documentation that becomes part of the written report
Job sizes
Minor
A limited scope inspection or a compliance check on a small boat, without a sea trial
Standard
A full pre purchase condition and value survey on a typical recreational vessel, priced by length
Major
Larger vessels, metal hulls needing ultrasonic thickness readings, or complex damage and claim surveys
Replacement
Commercial vessel work, where Coast Guard and classification society requirements set the scope and the surveyor is one part of a larger process
Final pricing comes from the on-call provider after on-site assessment, with a written estimate before any work starts.
What to expect
- ✓Accreditation verifiable in the SAMS or NAMS public member directory, since Texas does not license this
- ✓Written report delivered in a form insurance carriers and lenders actually accept
- ✓Survey written against published standards including ABYC and NFPA 302 rather than personal opinion
- ✓Independent of the seller, the broker, and the yard doing the work
Look for accreditation through SAMS as an Accredited Marine Surveyor or NAMS as a Certified Marine Surveyor, both verifiable in the public member directories. Surveyors carry professional liability coverage, and many hold ABYC certifications in the specific systems they inspect. Ask which insurance carriers accept their reports, because that is the practical test of whether a survey will do the job you are paying for.
Common questions
Do I really need a survey if the boat looks good?
The things that end boats are the things you cannot see. Wet core in a deck, delamination in a hull, corrosion behind a panel, and a tired transom all look fine from the dock. Insurance carriers and lenders require surveys precisely because appearance and condition are not the same thing on a boat, and the survey routinely finds either a deal breaker or enough negotiating leverage to more than cover its own cost.
Is a marine surveyor licensed by the state?
No. Texas does not license marine surveyors, and neither does the Coast Guard. That is exactly why accreditation matters here more than it would in a licensed trade. Check the SAMS or NAMS member directory yourself rather than taking a logo on a website at face value, and ask which insurance carriers accept the surveyor's reports.
What is a pre purchase survey and what does it include?
It is the most thorough survey type. It normally includes a full inspection of hull, structure, systems, and equipment, a sea trial to see the boat run under load, and a short haul so the bottom, running gear, and through hulls can be seen out of the water. Skipping the haul out to save money means paying for a survey that never looked at the part of the boat that sinks it.
Can I use the seller's survey?
For deciding whether to keep looking, sure. For deciding whether to buy, no. A survey is written for whoever commissioned it, it reflects the condition on the day it was done, and an older report will not reflect a season of use. Insurance carriers and lenders generally want a current survey commissioned by the buyer, and the buyer is the one who needs the surveyor working for them.
How is a survey different from a mechanic looking at the engines?
Different scope and often both are worth doing. A marine surveyor assesses the vessel as a whole, structure, systems, safety equipment, and value. Engine condition is its own specialty, and many surveyors will recommend a separate engine survey with oil analysis and compression testing on a boat where the engines represent a large share of the value. A good surveyor tells you when you need the second opinion.
What does the coast do to boats that inland water does not?
Saltwater accelerates everything. Galvanic and stray current corrosion attack running gear, fasteners, and bonding systems in ways freshwater boats rarely show, sacrificial anodes get consumed fast, and constant humidity finds its way into coring and electrical connections. A boat that spent its life in a Coastal Bend slip should be inspected with different expectations than the same model off a freshwater lake.
What happens after a hurricane?
Damage survey demand goes vertical and surveyors get consumed by claim work for weeks. If you are buying, expect scheduling to slip badly in that window. If you have a claim, get on a list early and document everything yourself in the meantime, because your own photographs taken before anything is moved are worth a great deal to an adjuster later.
Coastal Bend seasons
Spring (March - May)
Buying season. Pre purchase surveys peak, and both surveyors and haul out slots at the yards book out further than buyers expect. Schedule the survey when you make the offer, not after.
Summer (June - August)
Heavy use season means more damage and grounding surveys, and heat makes moisture readings and deck inspection findings more pronounced. Yard availability tightens because everyone wants their boat in the water.
Fall (September - November)
Hurricane season decides the calendar. Before a storm, owners scramble to document condition. After one, claim and damage surveys consume all available capacity across the Coastal Bend and transaction work waits.
Winter (December - February)
The quietest and easiest season to get a thorough survey with an unhurried surveyor and open yard slots. Winter Texan arrivals drive a secondary round of purchase and insurance surveys.