If you own or operate a marina, ensuring the safety of your customers’ boats is vitally important. Putting good security measures in place not only prevents crimes and protects your clients’ assets, it will also give potential customers the confidence to moor their boats with you in the knowledge that you are doing everything possible to keep their vehicles safe. Here are some of the best ways to keep your marina secure.

Security Guards

For larger marinas and harbours, full-time security guards are one of the best ways to prevent crimes. Any security guards you hire should have an SIA licence to ensure they comply with all of the relevant legislation. For smaller marinas where full-time security is not cost effective, organising a neighbourhood watch scheme can provide some of the same benefits.

Lighting

Good lighting is one of the simplest and most effective ways of deterring crime. Most marina-owners opt for powerful external lighting activated by motion sensors, but you can also have lights that are triggered by infrared beams for any particularly high-risk areas. When having security lighting installed it is important to make sure all the key areas are covered, leaving no blind spots that a criminal might exploit. Good lighting also has a secondary benefit for marinas by increasing visibility around the water’s edge to help prevent accidents.

CCTV

CCTV cameras are one of the best deterrents against criminal activity, as well as providing vital evidence if a crime does occur. When selecting external cameras, you must make sure they come with the correct weather proof housing to prevent damage. Things to consider include whether you want cameras that operate both during the day and at night (highly recommended) or just at night. Footage can be stored on a digital video recorder (DVR) or linked to a computer for viewing and storage. For information about the legal implications of using CCTV, take a look at the government’s website and the Information Commissioner’s Office guidelines.

Controlled Access

Many marina owners now choose to restrict access from the landwards side of their property. One way is to place fences all around the marina with gated-access for legitimate users. However, if you simply want to prevent unauthorised vehicles entering the site, a car gate may be sufficient. Either way, keypad entry systems are ideal for controlling access as it allows multiple users to enter the site without the need to keep handing out and collecting keys. It is also much cheaper and easier to change a keypad code than to get a new key cut for every customer in the event of a security breach.