Paid for diving?

[Brass Monkey]

I have been wondering how everyone stands on the “getting paid for diving” issue. Lets say that a friend asked you to find something for them, they know that this will interfere with your normal work so they offer to pay you your wage and a little bit on top as a sweetener. Do you say:
No I have to be HSE qualified to get paid for working. It’s people who do this kind of thing that make it hard for commies to make a living.
Or:
Yes mate no problem, I’ll be glad to do it. After all those commies make a packet anyway.
Or something between the two.

This should have been a poll but I’ve no clue how to do one.

Dave.

[jptaylor9]

[Fiona]

Originally Posted by Brass Monkey

I have been wondering how everyone stands on the “getting paid for diving” issue. Lets say that a friend asked you to find something for them, they know that this will interfere with your normal work so they offer to pay you your wage and a little bit on top as a sweetener. Do you say:

Dave.

Not sure what you are really asking, but this is only my opinion, if it was a friend that was asking me to take them diving for a little bit of experience or wanting something signed off as part of their BSAC qualification then I would do it for nothing, but this is the club culture I was brought up into. Surely if you are charging your friends then you are going to get into all sorts of problems should something go wrong. When I did my training and an Instructor took me for some training (not club trips) then I would pay his entrance fee and refill their cylinders that sort of thing.

However if I was an instructor making a living out of diving this would be different.

Are you asking what folk think of the idea or what the law is?
Legally if you get paid you are working and come under the HSE regs no matter what folks opinion of the rights and wrongs are.

[Padowan]

Originally Posted by RubberBoy

Are you asking what folk think of the idea or what the law is?
Legally if you get paid you are working and come under the HSE regs no matter what folks opinion of the rights and wrongs are.

And by payment, that also includes payment in kind - ie, tank fills, entrance fees or a burger at lunch. In order to completely negate the need for HSE diving regs, you will actually end up out of pocket as you will be funding yourself entirely.

[jptaylor9]

[Mark Davies]

My reading of the original question brought to mind situations other than instructing - for instance salvage.

I've read a couple of accounts on here where YD members have been asked to take a quick dip in a harbour to retrieve something. I think Digger managed to recover a watch or similar? If I remember right he arranged a fee in advance and got paid quite handsomely for it.

My brother asked me to take a dip in his carp pond to help fix a filter. Now I didn't get paid for that (though he offered). If I had been paid would that (and Digger's dive) fall under HSE regulations? I think it probably would. And how many out there dive in lakes at their local golf course to recover balls which the club pay them for?

Is this legal? We all know Digger is a naughty boy, but what about the rest of us?

[Fiona]

Originally Posted by Mark Davies

My brother asked me to take a dip in his carp pond to help fix a filter. Now I didn't get paid for that (though he offered). If I had been paid would that (and Digger's dive) fall under HSE regulations? I think it probably would. And how many out there dive in lakes at their local golf course to recover balls which the club pay them for?

Is this legal? We all know Digger is a naughty boy, but what about the rest of us?

Oh, one of our guys on a trip to the Cylde last year was asked if we could retreive part of this BBQ from the marina, the guy did give us some beer money. I was asked to cut away a rope from a yachts prop, although no money was offered.

[Brass Monkey]

Originally Posted by Mark Davies

My reading of the original question brought to mind situations other than instructing - for instance salvage.

I've read a couple of accounts on here where YD members have been asked to take a quick dip in a harbour to retrieve something. I think Digger managed to recover a watch or similar? If I remember right he arranged a fee in advance and got paid quite handsomely for it.

My brother asked me to take a dip in his carp pond to help fix a filter. Now I didn't get paid for that (though he offered). If I had been paid would that (and Digger's dive) fall under HSE regulations? I think it probably would. And how many out there dive in lakes at their local golf course to recover balls which the club pay them for?

Is this legal? We all know Digger is a naughty boy, but what about the rest of us?

Should have known you would get the gist of it Mark. This is what I'm talking about. We all should know the law regarding this, the law was not the question. The question was meant to gauge peoples attitudes towards doing the kind of thing Digger did. I myself have no problems with this kind of thing but others feel quite strongly about it. As for the law I think it will only be concerned if there is an accident/incident or some busy body kept hassling the local authorities to take action. There are laws and there are laws, a bit discretion is needed when interpreting the letter of the law. Before any bleeding heart do good’er types start coming away with shite like “as soon as you break any law then you might as well be an arch criminal” I have one thing to say to this attitude. Blow it out your arse.

Dave.

[chrisch]

Originally Posted by Mark Davies

Is this legal? We all know Digger is a naughty boy, but what about the rest of us?

Cativi your honour....

I recovered a jetski cowling in return for a 15 minute hire of another similar beast at Cotswold water park some years back.

I think HSE have tightened up since then.

I have argued that BSAC instructors that get bought a pint are "paid" and so fall under HSE. But they (BSAC) told me to shut up, so I will.

Chris