Life jacket rules and regulations for Queensland, Australia:

Life jackets are a vital piece of safety equipment that could save your life in Queensland.

The best idea is to make sure you wear it. Put the life jacket on as part of your pre-trip preparation. It is a lot harder to put a life jacket on in the water during an emergency.

Life jacket rules:

It is compulsory in Queensland to wear a life jacket:

• when crossing a designated coastal bar in an open boat that is less than 4.8m in length
  if you are under 12 years old (from 12 months old and up to, but not including, 12 years old) in an open boat that is less than 4.8m in length and underway.

Legislation also requires that:

• boat owners or skippers must give each person on board information about where safety equipment is kept and clearly sign where life jackets are stowed. The labels must have the word ‘life jacket’ in red text on a white background or white text on a red background
• life jackets must comply and display information about which Australian Standard (AS) applies. The lifejacket must comply with this standard. The current standard is AS 4758, which has replaced AS 1512-1996, AS 1499-1996 and AS 2260-1996. Life jackets that meet these previous standards are still acceptable to use if they are in good condition.

More valuable information from Maritime Safety Queensland…