Is your beacon registered? ……more than 40,000 beacons are not registered with the UK Beacon Registry.

Register your 406 megahertz beacon now – it could speed up your rescue and even save your life one day.

HM Coastguard and beacon manufacturers are urging owners of emergency 406 MHz beacons, Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) or Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs) to register their details on the UK Beacon Registry.

It is free and simple – go to www.gov.uk/406beacon

Steve Huxley, Search and Rescue Communications Manager said: ‘Registering your beacon can speed up the rescue and will give the Coastguard vital information in an emergency.

‘If you own an EPIRB or a PLB you are legally required to register your beacon with the UK Beacon Registry so that the Coastguard has enough information about you and your vessel in an emergency.  Ultimately, this will help save lives.’

More than half (40,000) of the UK beacons are not registered with the UK Beacon Registry and the details for existing registered beacons can soon become out of date as people move house, sell their boat and change their phone numbers.

To find out what happens when your beacon is activated – visit the MCA’s Facebook page or @MCA_media Twitter account.