My boat has a mechanical problem. What do I do?
Cancel or move the trip as early as you can, and tell us. If you can put the guest on another suitable boat you trust, that is usually the best outcome for everyone.
Substituting a comparable vessel is acceptable provided the guest is told exactly what is changing and agrees to it. Quietly putting them on a smaller or older boat is not.
Tell the guest what happened in plain terms — an engine that will not start is something every visitor understands — and give them the choice between another date, a substitute boat, and a full refund of the deposit. A mechanical cancellation is not counted against you the way a cancellation for a better offer is, but a run of them is a signal about the boat, and we will ask.
Block the days you expect to be out of the water so no new requests arrive while the boat is on the hard.