The unsecured owner, in The Superyacht Report

Jack MacNally, a director of Watermans, writes in The Superyacht Report on what happens to a buyer's money when a shipyard fails during a build.

The Superyacht Report's Owners Focus issue, number 230, published on 17 September 2026, carries "The unsecured owner" by Jack MacNally, a director of Watermans, on pages 6 to 13.

The article looks at shipyard insolvency from the buyer's side: how stage payments are structured, the practical limits of refund guarantees in yachting, who holds title to a hull under construction, and the proceedings concerning The Italian Sea Group in the Court of Florence in 2026. It draws on a review of some 25 yard failures since 2000, and considers how the 500 gross tonne threshold distorts design and refit decisions.

The issue is free to read in full on Issuu. The Superyacht Group holds the published article, which is not reproduced here.