Boating is a fun, and excellent activity for you and your family, especially jet boats, are good for maneuverability and general purposes. As a buyer, you might be concerned about jet boats, whether they are safe or dangerous than other boats, so let’s see statistically whether jet boats are safe or dangerous?
Jet boats can be dangerous, but the statistics show that the jet boats are 4 times safer than other motorized boats (including both open and cabin motorboats). And by doing a few changes to the way you ride the boat, you can dramatically reduce the risk of injury and dangers.
Any sport or activity has its risks and dangers, but those risks or threats shouldn’t concern you from doing those activities. By doing it the right way and the correct way will give you a lot of fun and thrill. And you can completely turn it into a very safe and fun activity to do with your kids and family.
And one of the advantages of Jet boats than other boats is it will stick to the water at turning (these boats can turn on a dime). Making a boat more stable in the water compared to other boats. The jet boat gives you a more stable (smooth) ride in the water while it’s moving with fewer jerks.
With that being said, let’s see some statistics of jet boat accidents, injuries, and deaths to get some idea about whether jet boats are safe or dangerous compared to other motorized boats. And lastly, some safety measures to take along with it as well.
Related post – Check my article on Is boating safe? (links opens in a new tab) to know statistically whether boating is safe or dangerous.
Interesting Statistics on Jetboat accidents
The statistics below can be an excellent resource for understanding the significant causes of jet boat accidents. And by knowing the causes, you can avoid them by making slight changes in the way you ride, which can immensely reduce your risk of serious injury.
- From 2010 to 2019, a total of 43,058 boating accidents occurred (source). Out of which 5044 are related to jet boats, and 16,895 are related to motorboats (open and cabin motorboats).
- With that, we can tell that jet boats are a lot safer than other boats, especially motorized boats (both open and cabin boats) such as pontoon boats, personal watercraft, skiff boats, deck boats, Bayliner, Jon boats, etc.
- From 2010 to 2019, a total of 6,482 deaths related to boating has occurred, among which 65 deaths are related to jet boats, which is significantly less compared to motorboat deaths that are 3,428.
- Suppose if we compare the deaths from kayaks and canoes that are 1,298, which is 20 times more than the deaths related to jet boats. With that, we can tell that jet boats are a lot safer than non-motorized boats (kayak and canoe).
- Among all the deaths related to a jet boat, more than 40% of the deaths are caused due to drowning in the water, despite the fact that life jacket is most common among all the boaters.
- From 2010 to 2019, 10,578 personal watercraft accidents have occurred, which is less than jet boat accidents. With that, we can tell that jet boats are safer than PWCs as well.
- Collision with recreational boats is another major cause of jet boat accidents, which can be prevented by proper lookout while boating and maintaining an appropriate distance between other boats.
- Collision with fixed objects is another major cause of jet boat accidents, which can be prevented by proper lookout while boating and maintaining an appropriate distance between other boats.
- Among all those jet boat accidents, more than 70% of the accidents have occurred due to collision with recreational boats and fixed objects, which can be prevented easily.
- Jet boats give you a more stable ride in calm waters than rough or choppy waters. So, better be careful in rough or choppy waters.
Jet boat, motorboat, and PWC accidents are given below in the table. By looking into the statistics, you will get to know the differences between jet boat accidents and other boat accidents.
| Year | Jet boats | Open and closed motorboats | PWC |
| 2010 (source) | 585 | 1942 | 1221 |
| 2011 (source) | 491 | 1887 | 1158 |
| 2012 (source) | 502 | 1825 | 1111 |
| 2013 (source) | 454 | 1603 | 954 |
| 2014 (source) | 395 | 1645 | 891 |
| 2015 (source) | 524 | 1642 | 1023 |
| 2016 (source) | 509 | 1800 | 1072 |
| 2017 (source) | 514 | 1587 | 1028 |
| 2018 (source) | 526 | 1470 | 1055 |
| 2019 (source) | 544 | 1494 | 1062 |
You can see the accidents, injuries, and deaths related to the jet boats in the table below. By looking into the statistics, you will get to know how many accidents, injuries, and deaths occur in the past years and their trends.
| Year | Deaths | Injuries | Accidents |
| 2010 | 8 | 77 | 585 |
| 2011 | 3 | 39 | 491 |
| 2012 | 5 | 55 | 502 |
| 2013 | 2 | 49 | 454 |
| 2014 | 6 | 46 | 395 |
| 2015 | 14 | 69 | 524 |
| 2016 | 6 | 75 | 509 |
| 2017 | 9 | 47 | 514 |
| 2018 | 8 | 38 | 526 |
| 2019 | 4 | 49 | 544 |
Related post – Check my article on Is Jet skiing safe? (links opens in a new tab) to know statistically whether jet skiing is safe or dangerous.
Some of the safety tips to be followed while boating
Now you got to know some of the significant causes of jet boat accidents such as improper lookout, collision with fixed objects, drowning, etc. By making some changes to the way you ride, you can avoid some (most) of them.
You can check one of my articles to know the Major causes of boating accidents (opens in a new tab) in a detailed way for each case (cause). Okay, let’s see some of the safety tips to take while boating.
1. Check the weather before starting the trip
- Weather is one of the things that concern many people when they think about boating. Like many people think (assume) that the weather is the only dangerous part when it comes to boating, but it is not entirely true; only to some extent.
- By checking the weather condition before starting the trip, you can avoid some percent of boating accidents, which will make you 20% less likely to die or injure in a boating accident, especially jet boats sometimes may not perform well in choppy waters.
2. Take a boating safety course
- Before starting boating for the first time or as a beginner, the essential thing as a boater, you need to do is by taking a boating safety course. By taking a course, you will get to know about the boat, terminology, rules, laws, etc., which help you a lot in advance.
- By taking a boating safety course, you will get some experience, and you will get to know the boating rules, which makes you 25% less likely to die or injure in a boating accident.
3. Take help from crew to avoid inattention and improper lookout
- To avoid operator inattention while boating is by keeping all the things that distract you, such as using a phone or doing another work away while boating. You can take help from crew members (if any) otherwise slow down the boat and do it carefully.
- By asking others (crew members) to do some works while operating the boat, you can avoid operator inattention and improper lookout, which makes you 25% less likely to die or injure in a boating accident.
4. Don’t touch alcohol while operating the boat
- Alcohol consumption is causing the majority of deaths related to boating. You can carry it in the boat, but if you are the one who is operating the boat, then you can’t drink while boating. A boat operator shouldn’t drink alcohol while operating the boat, and it’s a rule.
- By avoiding drinking alcohol while operating the boat, you are 20% less likely to die in a boating accident.
Those are some of the safety tips to reduce the risks and dangers while boating. Still, there are many things to do to prevent boating accidents. Check my article on How to avoid boating accidents (opens in a new tab) to know more info about the prevention tips.
And finally, some percent (small percent) of the boating accidents are caused by not taking the proper equipment in the boat, such as not having a life jack for each person on board, not having the required visual or sound signaling devices on the boat, etc.
If you are in an emergency while boating, then you need to contact the coast guards, but if you don’t have the proper equipment in the boat, such as VHF radio or EPIRB to contact them, then the emergency situation can turn into a tragedy.
To know what all the safety equipment is required on the boat, check my article on Required safety equipment in a boat (opens in a new tab) to know all the required safety equipment based on where you will go for boating, such as in rivers or lakes or oceans.
Bottom line
Safety is going to be the first priority to anyone, and by taking some measures while boating (operating the boat), you can do that. After making some changes to the way you ride the boat, you can prevent the majority of the boating accidents.
Especially jet boats are more stable than other boats at turns, which gives you extra safety as well. And those statistics also show that jet boats are a lot safer than other boats. Boating is a fun activity, and it is a safe activity until if you do something wrong or neglect the boating rules.