Chapter 4: The Legal Requirements of Boating
Requirements Specific to Personal Watercraft (PWCs)

In addition to adhering to all boating laws, personal watercraft (PWC) operators have requirements specific to their vessel.

• Each person riding on a PWC must wear a USCG–approved Type I, II, III, or V personal flotation device (PFD).
• An operator of a PWC equipped with a lanyard-type ignition safety switch must attach the lanyard to his or her person, clothing, or PFD.
• PWCs may be operated only during daylight hours (between sunrise and sunset).
• PWCs must be operated in a responsible manner. Remember, it is illegal to:
  • Weave your PWC through congested traffic.
  • Jump the wake of another vessel unreasonably close to that vessel or when visibility is obstructed.
  • Become airborne while crossing the wake of another vessel and within 100 feet of that vessel.
  • Operate at greater than “no wake speed” within 100 feet of an anchored vessel, shoreline, dock, pier, swim float, marked swimming area, swimmers, surfers, fishermen, or manually powered boats.
  • Exceed 10 miles per hour if you are following another vessel within 100 feet of its rear or 50 feet of its side.

Remember—As an owner of a PWC, you are responsible if you knowingly allow anyone else to operate your PWC in violation of West Virginia law.

Be Part of the Action! Learn more about operating a PWC with this interactive animation. (Most students will already have Flash installed. If not, follow this link to install the Flash Player.)

Towing a Person with a Vessel Legally

Vessel operators towing a person(s) on water skis, surfboards, or any similar devices must obey these laws also.

• All persons being towed must wear a U.S. Coast Guard–approved Type I, II, or III PFD. The only exception is for persons engaged in barefoot water-skiing. These persons, at their own risk, may wear a non–U.S. Coast Guard–approved barefoot wetsuit designed for that purpose.
• It is illegal for a vessel to tow a person(s) between one hour after sunset and one hour before sunrise.
• The person operating the towing vessel must not operate the vessel in a manner that would cause the object being towed to collide with any other object or person.
• The persons riding on the object being towed:
  • Must not manipulate the object so as to endanger the life, limb, or property of another person.
  • Must not be legally intoxicated due to alcohol or any combination of alcohol, controlled substances, or drugs.
• Every boat (other than a PWC) towing a person(s) on water skis or a similar device must have on board:
  • An observer, other than the vessel operator, 12 years of age or older or ...
  • A wide-angle rearview mirror mounted such that the operator can observe the person(s) being towed.
• Every PWC towing a person(s) on water skis or a similar device must:
  • Have a rear-facing observer on board who is 12 years of age or older and ...
  • Be rated for at least three people—the operator, the observer, and the retrieved skier.
• It is illegal to tow a person on water skis, a surfboard, or similar devices in any controlled speed zone areas.

If towing a skier with a PWC, the PWC must be rated for at least three people—the operator, the observer, and the retrieved skier.