General navigation rules

The COLREGs organise obligations for preventing collisions. They are not a list of privileges assigned to boat types. A first reading asks where they apply, which situation is described and which words have defined meanings. A small recreational sailboat participates in this system even near the coast or with limited equipment. The drawing separates scope, observation and responsibility; none disappears because another vessel carries a particular obligation. Size is relevant to some provisions, but does not remove the general duty to comply.

Rule 1(a) establishes scope on the high seas and waters connected with them navigable by seagoing vessels. Paragraph (b) accommodates special rules made by the appropriate authority for harbours, rivers and other specified waters, conforming as closely as possible to the international rules. It does not mean that any marina policy replaces the entire COLREGs. Identify the authority, location and subject of the local provision. A harbour speed limit and responsibility during an encounter answer different questions and can both be relevant.