So you wanna be an underwater bounty hunter?
Underwater treasure hunting is risky, competitive, hard work. It’s governed by an ocean of international laws and limitations, and requires lots of training before you can legally undertake it. But you can make a living out of diving: and not just through treasure hunting on sunken wrecks. Read on…

Ker-plosh!
So you went snorkelling in Magaluf last summer, found fifty pesetas on the Mediterranean floor, and now reckon that you could find a fortune. Well, before you hit the atlantic in your rubber dinghy, you’ll need to consider the following:

Getting started
Whether you’re considering diving as a career or a hobby, the starting point is the same: you’ll need training. If you’re going to go professional, you’ll need approved qualifications before you can legally dive for money. (See Links).

Governors of splosh
In the UK, the two main bodies responsible for doling out approved qualifications and certificates are:

• British Sub-aqua Club
• Professional Association of Diving Instructors
  (See Links).

Other recognised bodies include the Sub-aqua Association, the UK Armed Forces Divers, H&SE Commercial Divers, and the National Association of Diving Instructors.

Come on in, the water’s fine
As long as you’re over 14 years of age, and medically fit, you can start by taking the BSaC Club Diver course or a PaDI Open Water Diver course. These qualify you to make a sub-aqua dive to a level of no more than twenty metres. (See Links).

Down down, deeper and down
Both BSaC and PaDI run courses in wreck diving for amateur divers. But anyone who wants to go pro will need to move through these and get on down to the BSaC 1st Class Diver course.

Oi! get orf my wreck!
Before you go diving in with your ‘pro’ certificates, lifting crystal chandeliers from the wreck of the Queen Mary and selling them through Sotheby’s, you need to know a few things about Maritime Law.

Put the cannon down, and move away from the wreck with your hands in the air!
In the UK, certain named and marked wrecks may not even be approached without a government licence. Even if you discover a wreck that nobody has found before, if you remove any items from that wreck you must immediately inform the Receiver of Wrecks – failure to do so will lead to criminal prosecution! (See Links for info on how to contact the Receiver, and for links to government sites dealing with Maritime Law).

Who are they?
The Receiver of Wrecks is the government body that arbitrates over the ownership of any artefact taken from the sea. The finder of an artefact doesn’t necessarily have the salvage rights to it. The primary rights to any artefact lie with the owner of the vessel from which the artefact came.

But I found it!
This means that even if you found and took the trouble and expense of recovering a bag of gold doubloons from a previously undiscovered wreck, it’s still not yours to keep!

It’s not fair!
Don’t worry, you’ll get your just reward. If a rightful owner of the vessel comes forward, or if the Crown decides to keep those shiny doubloons, they must give you an appropriate salvage payment for your efforts. Otherwise, you’ll legally get to keep the booty, and dispose of it in any way you desire.

Related work
Marine biology, seabed oil and mineral exploration, underwater photography, underwater archaeology, underwater civil engineering, marine conservation, diving instructor, underwater synchronised dancing.

Future prospects
As you can see from the ‘related work’ section, there are a number of trades that can be pursued below water. But, it’s highly competitive, is often short-term, involves a lot of working away from home, is very demanding physically, can be stressful, and the pay, whilst generally good, is not consistent. Other than that though, it’s great.