When Should I report an accident?

We can all hope that it will never happen, and for the vast majority of us, we will be able to make it through our boating adventures without incident.  As with driving a car, the risk is there for an accident while on the water.  Boating accidents are usually thought to be much worse though because of the location, basically the middle of no where.  So thus the question arises, when should an accident be reported to authorities?

This is different from state to state and boater to boater.  What you may see as a big deal, the opposing boater may just brush it off.  Here are three guidelines to think about when determining if an accident should be reported.

• Did the accident result in a death or disappearance?
• Are there any injuries that require medical attention more than first aid would allow?
• Check your state's regulations for this one, but there is a threshold ranging from $200 to $2,000 in damage.  If there is more than the given amount of damage, the incident must be reported to the authorities.  

We can all hope that there will never be any problems while on the water, but one of my favorite sayings is "hope for the best, prepare for the worst."