New millionaires spend it on the water

One of the biggest changes in the leisure boating market is the increase in popularity of rigid inflatable speedboats, writes Aileen Power.

“Increased affluence has particularly fed into the boating market in the last three years,” said Bill Cullen, a director of Carrick-on-Shannon marine underwriting specialist Yachtsman Euromarine. “People are spending from€10,000 to in excess of €1 million on boats,” he said.

Cullen said that rigid inflatable boats or RIBS were a rapidly ...