Marine Surveys
Understand condition, systems and repair questions.
Condition · Repair & Refit · Insurance
Explore marine survey scope
MARINE SURVEYS · CERTIFIED APPRAISALS · LITIGATION SUPPORT
Know the vessel. Understand its value.
Marine surveys, certified appraisals and expert-witness support for owners, lenders, insurers and maritime attorneys. Understand condition, establish value and prepare for your next transaction or dispute.
INDEPENDENT PERSPECTIVE. INFORMED DECISIONS.01 / THE VALUE OF CLARITY
THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE OPINION
Yacht-market knowledge. Hands-on marine experience.
Vessel Value Survey brings together Jason Dunbar’s yacht-market knowledge and Mark Geddis’s surveying and marine-engineering experience, connecting market evidence with a vessel’s physical condition.
Alongside Paul Hite’s damage and insurance assessment experience, the team helps owners and professional advisers understand the vessel, its value and the appropriate scope of a report.
Meet the team ↓MEET VESSEL VALUE SURVEY · 1 MIN 11 SEC
Who we help
Built around the decision in front of you.
Most of our work comes from the professionals who depend on a vessel’s value being right. Each has different questions, deadlines and standards to meet. We tailor every report to them.
Insurance professionalsSettle claims on solid ground.Pre-loss values, damage surveys and after-repair opinions that help adjusters and underwriters close files fairly and quickly.Pre-loss valueDamage surveyAfter repair valueFor insurers & adjusters →
Banks & marine lendersCollateral you can underwrite.Fair market, orderly and forced liquidation values grounded in condition and comparable sales, for origination, refinance and recovery.FMVOLVFLVRefinanceFor lenders →
Maritime attorneysEvidence prepared for scrutiny.Independent technical and valuation opinions, diminution-in-value analysis, depositions and testimony from people who know vessels.Expert witnessDiminution in valueDepositionsFor legal teams →
Yacht managementClear answers for owners.Condition baselines, refit scoping and valuations across the vessels you manage, explained in a way owners understand.Condition surveyRefit costsValuationFor managers & owners →
EXPLORE THE EXPERTISE
Assess condition. Establish value. Support your case.
Certified Appraisals
Put vessel value in the context of your decision.
Value · Importation · Donation · Refinance
Explore certified appraisalsExpert Witness & Litigation Support
Bring technical vessel evidence into case preparation and testimony.
Forensic analysis · Depositions · Testimony
Explore litigation supportCertified appraisal & valuation services
Fair Market Value (FMV), Orderly Liquidation Value (OLV), Forced Liquidation Value (FLV) and After Repair Value (ARV) describe different valuation contexts. A Desktop Valuation is a way of developing an opinion without a physical inspection. Compare the definitions and discuss which scope fits your decision.
Compare valuation contextsNew construction & contract specifications
Contract Spec Review is a related oversight service described by VVS: reviewing the specification, safety requirements and shipyard milestones for a new build. Discuss the scope separately from an appraisal.
Explore service scopeCERTIFIED APPRAISALS & VALUATION
Understand the value. Know the basis.
A purchase, refinance, donation or dispute can call for different valuation information. VVS connects vessel condition, comparable sales and market research to the purpose of your appraisal.
Fair Market Value · Orderly Liquidation Value · Forced Liquidation Value · After Repair Value
Explore what each basis means, when it may be relevant and how a desktop valuation differs from an inspection-based assignment.
Learn about vessel appraisals
MEET THE TEAM
Meet the specialists. Examine their experience.
Jason Dunbar
Experience as a yacht captain, sailing instructor, yacht broker and expert witness informs Jason’s research-led approach to vessel value.
View Jason’s full profileCertified Professional Yacht Broker with yacht-market, appraisal and expert-testimony experience.
Mark Geddis
A marine engineering background, including service in the Royal Navy, underpins Mark’s focus on vessel systems, operation and condition.
View Mark’s full profileAccredited Marine Surveyor (SAMS®) with a Royal Navy engineering background and a Diploma in Hull and Machinery Surveying.
Paul Hite
Paul combines practical shipyard experience with knowledge of sails, rigging and associated systems, with a focus on damage and insurance assessments.
View Paul’s full profileHOW THE WORK BEGINS
Agree the scope. Assess the evidence. Document the findings.
01 / Define the decision
Start with the vessel, intended use and information needed.
02 / Establish the evidence
Consider vessel condition, available records and relevant market evidence.
03 / Explain the opinion
Make the basis, assumptions and limitations clear.
EXPERIENCE. STANDARDS. MARINE COMMUNITY.
Industry Credentials & Compliance
SURVEYING EXPERTISE
SAMS®
Mark Geddis is an Accredited Marine Surveyor (SAMS®), with a background spanning Royal Navy engineering, yacht operations and condition assessment.
Explore Mark’s experience
APPRAISAL STANDARDS
USPAP-compliant appraisals
VVS prepares valuations in accordance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice, connecting vessel condition, market evidence and a defined valuation purpose.
Explore appraisal servicesAn explained methodology
Every VVS appraisal connects documented condition with comparable sales, market trends and a clearly defined purpose, prepared in line with USPAP.
Read about appraisal scopeIndividual professional records
Explore the expertise behind the work, from yacht markets and appraisal to marine engineering and damage assessment. Read the individual professional records.
Meet the specialistsBreadth of vessel experience
From sportfishers to superyachts, explore the builders and yacht types VVS has surveyed and appraised.
Explore the builders we’ve surveyedNews & Insights
Perspective for the decisions marine professionals face.
Valuation · 4 min readWhat to provide for a vessel appraisalThe documents, records and access that make an appraisal faster and more accurate.Read article →
Insurance · 5 min readUnderstanding after-repair valueHow a quality repair affects value, and when diminution in value still applies.Read article →
Surveying · 3 min readSurvey or appraisal? What each one answersA quick guide to choosing the right report for a purchase, a claim or a dispute.Read article →