[K1W1]

Hi,

I am not sure of the amount of historical data available to purchasers of US Flag vessels ( I am assuming that this is a US Flag vessel you are looking at) I have not been on one so can only write about non US Flag vessels.

I am fairly sure that I have never worked on a vessel that identifies the Owner by name in anyway at all in it's registration documentation. This would make finding previous Owners difficult and then you would have to find out how to contact them, Captains and Crews often have to sign employment contracts that include sections which provide recourse to the employer if they are found to have been talking out of school about the boat/owner etc.

If the vessel is classed this can be a good place to look for anything regarding a class notifiable problem. The current survey status is also a very valuable thing to have, it's just not available to everyone though for obvious reasons.