Catamaran builder Lagoon is seeking to reassure owners of the Lagoon 450 following reports of forward bulkhead deformation.

Lagoon, which is part of Groupe Beneteau, has stressed that no navigation or safety issues have been reported as a result of the fault.

Since 2011, 1,011 Lagoon 450s have been produced.

The boat builder said it had thoroughly examined the cases reported to it ‘to understand causes and potential impacts of deformed or broken forward bulkhead’ on the Lagoon 450.

The French naval architectural firm, VPLP Design, which designed Alex Thomson’s latest HUGO BOSS and the new Maxi Banque Populaire XI, was also bought in to review the findings, and concluded that: ‘there is no safety issue when navigating with a broken or deformed bulkhead. Potential damages on forward bulkhead could not lead to neither dismasting nor any risk for the crew.’

Lagoon Brand Director, Thomas Gailly told Yachting Monthly that less than 20% of owners had ‘proactively’ contacted them about the issue, and that 80% of the boats inspected had no deformation or ‘were very lightly impacted’.

Lagoon is encouraging boat owners to contact their nearest Lagoon dealer or official service centre for a full inspection of their forward bulkhead, which will be paid for by Lagoon.

Owners will need the following information: hull number; current and past names of the vessel; full name and contact information of the owner; current and past passage plans of the boat; current and past mooring locations; usage history of the vessel (private, professional or charter); any sales history of the vessel; any available professional surveys; vessel survey at the purchase date (for secondhand boat only); any incidents of note for the vessel; any copies of logbooks for the vessel.

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For 450s under warranty, Lagoon will fully cover the costs of labour and parts.

It will provide customised bulkhead reinforcement and dedicated parts kits to all owners whose boats are out of warranty. Labour costs will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.

All repairs by a Lagoon dealer or service centre will be certified by Lagoon and have a one year warranty.

Lagoon said it will support each Lagoon 450 owner whose boat was subject to ‘normal use’.

Examples of abnormal use include: sailing out of the Owner’s Manual sailing advice; sailing with more sail area than allowed on the Owner’s Manual sailing advice; powering against sea and wind for a long time at 30° off the true wind; sailing in very shallow waters to a point where waves could end up in occasional groundings; anchoring in very shallow waters to a point where waves could end up in occasional groundings; grounding; tightening the rig out of the mast manufacturer specification and improper haul out and storage.

More information at: https://www.cata-lagoon.com/en/lagoon-450-support?fbclid=IwAR3wjZemcAkYwKezGBSj3jCWEJU8_V4lc-uu5O1OV0WCKR2_EpMn2yN10Ms