So, with the tough New Zealand fishing critic in mind, where better to design and build a boat than right here at home in New Zealand by a team of passionate fishermen and engineers. Surtees Boats was born during the early 1990's when Neil Surtees decided to design and build himself an aluminum boat to use for fishing off the Whakatane Coast.

When local people saw the way that the finished product looked and performed it wasn't long before Neil had more orders than he could cope with. As Neil started making more and more boats, word quickly spread about these boats that were built to fish and the business continued to grow. Surtees now employs over 50 highly trained staff and their boats are New Zealand's top selling plate aluminum boat. Surtees Boats have proven to be incredibly popular and are recognized by fishermen all over the world for their quality, safety, stability and practical features. Surtees really are Built to Fish.

While fishing enthusiasts all over the world rave about the "fishability" of their Surtees, there's one thing the company treats even more seriously - and that's safety. The fact is, Surtees boats are built to the European CE Safety Rating which is recognised as one of the most strict safety ratings in the world and is recognised in over 70 countries.

The time and expertise required to attain this rating is demanding, but it ensures all Surtees boats are incredibly strong and robust with six fully-welded under-floor stringers running the length of the hull with gussets every 400mm, plus a fully welded tread plate alloy floor.

However, while the CE rating is a feature that separates Surtees from most of its competitors, the designers have taken safety even further by incorporating port and starboard sealed buoyancy chambers along the full length of the hull. The airtight Safety Buoyancy compartments are encased in plate alloy with the hull below and the floor above creating a double barrier of protection that is virtually impenetrable.

Combined with the inherent strength of a Surtees, these additional safety features make boating more pleasurable with the extra security of knowing you have one of the safest boats available.