Michigan Laws 324.44522 – Rental of personal watercraft; prohibition; certification required; rental agreement; contents; validity; liability; violation of subsection (1) or (2) as misdemeanor; impoundment
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Terms Used In Michigan Laws 324.44522
- Boat livery: means a place of business or any location where a person rents or offers for rent any vessel other than a nonmotorized raft to the general public for noncommercial use on the waters of this state. See Michigan Laws 324.44501
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Department: means the director of the department of natural resources or his or her designee to whom the director delegates a power or duty by written instrument. See Michigan Laws 324.301
- Operate: when used with reference to a vessel, means to start any propulsion engine or to physically control the motion, direction, or speed of the vessel. See Michigan Laws 324.44501
- Owner: when used in reference to a vessel, means a person who claims lawful possession of the vessel by virtue of legal title or an equitable interest in a vessel that entitles that person to possession of the vessel. See Michigan Laws 324.44501
- Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental entity, or other legal entity. See Michigan Laws 324.301
- Personal watercraft: means a vessel that meets all of the following requirements:
(i) Uses a motor-driven propeller or an internal combustion engine powering a water jet pump as its primary source of propulsion. See Michigan Laws 324.44501state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories belonging to the United States; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the district and territories. See Michigan Laws 8.3o
(1) A boat livery shall not rent a personal watercraft to any of the following:
(a) A person who is under 14 years of age.
(b) A person who does not display to the boat livery owner or the owner’s agent, if it is required under part 802, a boating safety certificate that is issued by the department or the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary or an electronic copy, in a format approved by the department of such a boating safety certificate, unless the individual obtains training in the safe use of a personal watercraft from the boat livery before the personal watercraft is rented. The department shall provide to boat liveries guidelines for the training required under this subdivision.
(2) A person who rents a personal watercraft from a boat livery shall not permit an individual to operate the personal watercraft if the individual has not obtained a boating safety certificate as required under part 802.
(3) A boat livery shall provide a copy of the written rental agreement to each individual who rents a personal watercraft from the boat livery and who has obtained the training required under subsection (1). The written rental agreement shall include all of the following information:
(a) The name of the person who rents a personal watercraft from the boat livery.
(b) The date or dates of the rental.
(4) The written rental agreement described under subsection (3) is a valid boating safety certificate under part 802 only for the person named in the certificate on the date or dates of the rental of the personal watercraft.
(5) A person who rents a personal watercraft from a boat livery is liable for any injury resulting from the negligent operation of the personal watercraft, whether the negligence consists of a violation of the statutes of this state, or the failure to observe the ordinary care in operation required by the common law. If the personal watercraft is operated by an individual other than the person who rents the personal watercraft, the person who rents the personal watercraft is not liable under this subsection unless the personal watercraft is being operated with his or her expressed or implied consent. It is rebuttably presumed that the personal watercraft is being operated with the consent of the person if it is operated by his or her son, daughter, spouse, father, mother, brother, sister, or other immediate member of the person’s family.
(6) A person who violates subsection (1) or (2) is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not less than $100.00 or more than $500.00, or both. A person who violates subsection (1) or (2) twice within a 3-year period is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not more than $1,000.00, or both. A person who violates subsection (1) or (2) 3 or more times within a 5-year period is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 90 days or a fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both.
(7) In addition to any penalty imposed under subsection (6), upon a person’s second or subsequent violation of subsection (1), the court may issue an order impounding the personal watercraft that was rented in violation of subsection (1) for not more than 1 year. The cost of storage for an impoundment ordered under this subsection shall be paid by the owner of the personal watercraft.