Merchant Shipping (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1996

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AT 20 of 1996

MERCHANT SHIPPING (MISCELLANEOUS

PROVISIONS) ACT 1996

Merchant Shipping (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1996 Index


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MERCHANT SHIPPING (MISCELLANEOUS

PROVISIONS) ACT 1996

Index Section Page

PART 1 – CARRIAGE OF GOODS BY SEA 5

1 Shipping documents etc to which this Part applies ................................................... 5
2 Rights under shipping documents ............................................................................... 6
3 Liabilities under shipping documents ......................................................................... 8
4 Representations in bills of lading ................................................................................. 8
5 Part 1: interpretation etc................................................................................................. 8
PART 2 – MARINE POLLUTION 10

6 [Inserts section 9A in the Oil Pollution Act 1986.] ..................................................... 10
7 Amends Oil Pollution Act 1986 .................................................................................. 10
PART 3 – SALVAGE 10

8 Salvage Convention, 1989 to have force of law ........................................................ 10
PART 4 – SAFETY 11

9 Amends Merchant Shipping Act 1985 ....................................................................... 11
10 [Inserts section 2A in the Merchant Shipping Act 1985.] ........................................... 11
11 Amends Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations and Reports) Act
1979 ................................................................................................................................. 11
PART 5 – MASTERS AND SEAMEN 12

12 [Inserts section 34A in the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act
1979.] ............................................................................................................................... 12
13 Amends Merchant Shipping Masters and Seamen) Act 1979 ................................ 12
14 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979 ............................... 12
15 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979 ............................... 12
PART 6 – MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 12

16 Indemnity ....................................................................................................................... 12
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17 General power to charge fees ..................................................................................... 14
18 Sums ordered to be paid leviable by distress on ship ............................................. 14
19 Offences in connection with passenger ships ........................................................... 14
20 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979 .............................. 16
21 [Amends the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen Act 1979 and the
Merchant Shipping Act 1985....................................................................................... 16
22 References to United Kingdom Merchant Shipping legislation ............................ 16
23 Short title and commencement ................................................................................... 16
SCHEDULE 1 17

INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON SALVAGE, 1989 17
SCHEDULE 2 27

REPEAL OF ENACTMENTS ENABLING THE PRESCRIBING OF FEES 27
ENDNOTES 29

TABLE OF LEGISLATION HISTORY 29
TABLE OF RENUMBERED PROVISIONS 29
TABLE OF ENDNOTE REFERENCES 29

Merchant Shipping (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1996 Section 1


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c i e
MERCHANT SHIPPING (MISCELLANEOUS

PROVISIONS) ACT 1996

Received Royal Assent: 9 July 1996
Passed: 9 July 1996
Commenced: See endnotes
AN ACT
to make new provision for the carriage of goods by sea; to implement
the International Convention on Salvage 1989; to amend enactments relating to
safety of life at sea, marine pollution and merchant shipping; and for connected
purposes.
PART 1 – CARRIAGE OF GOODS BY SEA

1 Shipping documents etc to which this Part applies

(1) This Part applies to the following documents, that is to say —
(a) any bill of lading;
(b) any sea waybill; and
(c) any ship’s delivery order.
(2) References in this Part to a bill of lading —
(a) do not include references to a document which is incapable of
transfer either by indorsement or, as a bearer bill, by delivery
without indorsement; but
(b) subject to that, do include references to a received for shipment
bill of lading.
(3) References in this Part to a sea waybill are references to any document
which is not a bill of lading but —
(a) is such a receipt for goods as contains or evidences a contract for
the carriage of goods by sea; and
(b) identifies the person to whom delivery of the goods is to be made
by the carrier in accordance with that contract.
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(4) References in this Part to a ship’s delivery order are references to any
document which is neither a bill of lading nor a sea waybill but contains
an undertaking which —
(a) is given under or for the purposes of a contract for the carriage by
sea of the goods to which the document relates, or of goods which
include those goods; and
(b) is an undertaking by the carrier to a person identified in the
document to deliver the goods to which the document relates to
that person.
(5) The Department of Economic Development may by regulations make
provision for the application of this Part to cases where a
telecommunication system or any other information technology is used
for effecting transactions corresponding to —
(a) the issue of a document to which this Part applies;
(b) the indorsement, delivery or other transfer of such a document; or
(c) the doing of anything else in relation to such a document.1

(6) Regulations under subsection (5) may —
(a) make such modifications of the following provisions of this Part
as the Department considers appropriate in connection with the
application of this Part to any case mentioned in that subsection;
and
(b) contain supplemental, incidental, consequential and transitional
provisions.
(7) Regulations under this section shall not come into operation unless they
are approved by Tynwald.
2 Rights under shipping documents

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, a person
who becomes —
(a) the lawful holder of a bill of lading;
(b) the person who (without being an original party to the contract of
carriage) is the person to whom delivery of the goods to which a
sea waybill relates is to be made by the carrier in accordance with
that contract; or
(c) the person to whom delivery of the goods to which a ship’s
delivery order relates is to be made in accordance with the
undertaking contained in the order,
shall (by virtue of becoming the holder of the bill or, as the case may be,
the person to whom delivery is to be made) have transferred to and
vested in him all rights of suit under the contract of carriage as if he had
been a party to that contract.
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(2) Where, when a person becomes the lawful holder of a bill of lading,
possession of the bill no longer gives a right (as against the carrier) to
possession of the goods to which the bill relates, that person shall not
have any rights transferred to him by virtue of subsection (1) unless he
becomes the holder of the bill —
(a) by virtue of a transaction effected in pursuance of any contractual
or other arrangements made before the time when such a right to
possession ceased to attach to possession of the bill; or
(b) as a result of the rejection to that person by another person of
goods or documents delivered to the other person in pursuance of
any such arrangements.
(3) The rights vested in any person by virtue of the operation of
subsection (1) in relation to a ship’s delivery order —
(a) shall be so vested subject to the terms of the order; and
(b) where the goods to which the order relates form a part only of the
goods to which the contract of carriage relates, shall be confined
to rights in respect of the goods to which the order relates.
(4) Where, in the case of any document to which this Part applies —
(a) a person with any interest or right in or in relation to goods to
which the document relates sustains loss or damage in
consequence of a breach of the contract of carriage; but
(b) subsection (1) operates in relation to that document so that rights
of suit in respect of that breach are vested in another person,
the other person shall be entitled to exercise those rights for the benefit of
the person who sustained the loss or damage to the same extent as they
could have been exercised if they had been vested in the person for
whose benefit they are exercised.
(5) Where rights are transferred by virtue of the operation of subsection (1)
in relation to any document, the transfer for which that subsection
provides shall extinguish any entitlement to those rights which
derives —
(a) where that document is a bill of lading, from a person’s having
been an original party to the contract of carriage; or
(b) in the case of any document to which this Part applies, from the
previous operation of that subsection in relation to that document,
but the operation of that subsection shall be without prejudice to any
rights which derive from a person’s having been an original party to the
contract contained in, or evidenced by, a sea waybill and, in relation to a
ship’s delivery order, shall be without prejudice to any rights deriving
otherwise than from the previous operation of that subsection in relation
to that order.
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3 Liabilities under shipping documents

(1) Where section 2(1) operates in relation to any document to which this
Part applies and the person in whom rights are vested by virtue of that
subsection —
(a) takes or demands delivery from the carrier of any of the goods to
which the document relates;
(b) makes a claim under the contract of carriage against the carrier in
respect of any of those goods; or
(c) is a person who, at a time before those rights were vested in him,
took or demanded delivery from the carrier of any of those goods,
that person shall (by virtue of taking or demanding delivery or making
the claim or, in a case falling within paragraph (c), of having the rights
vested in him) become subject to the same liabilities under that contract
as if he had been a party to that contract.
(2) Where the goods to which a ship’s delivery order relates form a part only
of the goods to which the contract of carriage relates, the liabilities to
which any person is subject by virtue of the operation of this section in
relation to that order shall exclude liabilities in respect of any goods to
which the order does not relate.
(3) This section, so far as it imposes liabilities under any contract on any
person, shall be without prejudice to the liabilities under the contract of
any person as an original party to the contract.
4 Representations in bills of lading

A bill of lading which —
(a) represents goods to have been shipped on board a vessel or to
have been received for shipment on board a vessel; and
(b) has been signed by the master of the vessel or by a person who
was not the master but had the express, implied or apparent
authority of the carrier to sign bills of lading,
shall, in favour of a person who has become the lawful holder of the bill, be
conclusive evidence against the carrier of the shipment of the goods or, as the
case may be, of their receipt for shipment.
5 Part 1: interpretation etc

(1) In this Part —
“bill of lading
”, “sea waybill
” and “ship’s delivery order
” shall be construed
in accordance with section 1;
“the contract of carriage
” —
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(a) in relation to a bill of lading or sea waybill, means the contract
contained in or evidenced by that bill or waybill; and
(b) in relation to a ship’s delivery order, means the contract under or
for the purposes of which the undertaking contained in the order
is given;
“holder
”, in relation to a bill of lading, shall be construed in accordance with
subsection (2);
“information technology
” includes any computer or other technology by
means of which information or other matter may be recorded or
communicated without being reduced to documentary form; and
“telecommunication system
” has the same meaning as in the
Telecommunications Act 1984.
(2) References in this Part to the holder of a bill of lading are references to
any of the following persons, that is to say —
(a) a person with possession of the bill who, by virtue of being the
person identified in the bill, is the consignee of the goods to which
the bill relates;
(b) a person with possession of the bill as a result of the completion,
by delivery of the bill, of any indorsement of the bill or, in the case
of a bearer bill, of any other transfer of the bill;
(c) a person with possession of the bill as a result of any transaction
by virtue of which he would have become a holder falling within
paragraph (a) or (b) had not the transaction been effected at a time
when possession of the bill no longer gave a right (as against the
carrier) to possession of the goods to which the bill relates;
and a person shall be regarded for the purposes of this Part as having
become the lawful holder of a bill of lading wherever he has become the
holder of the bill in good faith.
(3) References in this Part to a person’s being identified in a document
include references to his being identified by a description which allows
for the identity of the person in question to be varied, in accordance with
the terms of the document, after its issue; and the reference in
section 1(3)(b) to a document’s identifying a person shall be construed
accordingly.
(4) Without prejudice to sections 2(2) and 4, nothing in this Part shall
preclude its operation in relation to a case where the goods to which a
document relates —
(a) cease to exist after the issue of the document; or
(b) cannot be identified (whether because they are mixed with other
goods or for any other reason);
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and references in this Part to the goods to which a document relates shall
be construed accordingly.
(5) This Part shall have effect without prejudice to the application, in
relation to any case, of the rules (the Hague-Visby Rules) which for the
time being have the force of law by virtue of section 1 of the Carriage of
Goods by Sea Act 1974.
PART 2 – MARINE POLLUTION

6 [Inserts section 9A in the Oil Pollution Act 1986.]

7 Amends Oil Pollution Act 1986

[Amends section 14 of the Oil Pollution Act 1986 as follows: paragraph (a)
substitutes in subsection (1) the words from ‘which relates to’ to ‘from ships’;
paragraph (b) inserts subsection (1A); paragraph (c) inserts subsection (4)(aa);
and paragraph (d) inserts subsections (4A), (4B) and (4C).]
PART 3 – SALVAGE

8 Salvage Convention, 1989 to have force of law

(1) The provisions of the International Convention on Salvage, 1989 as set
out in Part I of Schedule 1 (in this section and in Part II of that Schedule
referred to as ‘the Convention’) shall have the force of law in the Isle of
Man.
(2) The provisions of Part II of that Schedule shall have effect in connection
with the Convention, and subsection (1) shall have effect subject to the
provisions of that Part.
(3) If it appears to the Council of Ministers that there has been a revision of
the Convention, it may by order make such modifications of Schedule 1
as it considers appropriate in consequence of the revision.
(4) An order under subsection (3) shall not come into operation unless it is
approved by Tynwald.
(5) Nothing in subsection (1) or (2) shall affect any rights or liabilities arising
out of any salvage operations started or other acts done before the day on
which this section comes into operation.
(6) This section may be brought into operation before the entry into force of
the Convention and as respects any such period any reference in the
Convention to a State Party to the Convention shall be read as a reference
to the Isle of Man.
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(7) [Amends the Wreck and Salvage (Ships and Aircraft) Act 1979 as follows:
paragraph (a) repeals sections 19 and 20; paragraph (b) substitutes
‘£5,000’ for ‘£200’ in section 23(3) and (4); paragraph (c) inserts
section 25(2A); and paragraph (d) adds the second paragraph to
section 26.]
(8) Nothing in subsection (7) shall affect any rights or liabilities arising out
of any salvage operations started or other acts done before the day on
which that subsection comes into operation.
PART 4 – SAFETY

9 Amends Merchant Shipping Act 1985

[Amends section 1 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1985 as follows: paragraph (a)
adds subsection (1)(c); and paragraph (b) inserts subsection (3A).]
10 [Inserts section 2A in the Merchant Shipping Act 1985.]

11 Amends Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations and Reports)

Act 1979

(1) [Substitutes section 1 of the Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations
and Reports) Act 1979.]
(2) [Amends section 2 of the Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations and
Reports) Act 1979 as follows: paragraph (a) substitutes subsections (1) and
(1A) for subsection (1); paragraph (b) substitutes subsections (4), (5) and
(6) for subsections (4) and (5).]
(3) [Substitutes section 6 of the Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations
and Reports) Act 1979.]
(4) [Amends section 9 of the Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations and
Reports) Act 1979 by inserting the words ‘and no regulations under this
Act’ after the expression ‘or 8’.]
(5) [Paragraph (a) repeals section 5 of the Shipping Casualties (Inquiries,
Investigations and Reports) Act 1979; paragraph (b) repeals entries 17 and
18(a) in Schedule 1 to the Merchant Shipping Act 1985; and paragraph (c)
is spent.]
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PART 5 – MASTERS AND SEAMEN

12 [Inserts section 34A in the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act

1979.]

13 Amends Merchant Shipping Masters and Seamen) Act 1979

(1) [Substitutes section 22 of the Merchant Shipping (Masters and seamen) Act
1979.]
(2) [Spent]
14 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979

(1) [Substitutes section 23 of the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act
1979.]
(2) [Spent]
15 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979

(1) [Amends the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979 as follows:
paragraph (a) repeals in section 1 the words ‘after consultation with the
Secretary of State’, wherever they occur; paragraph (b) repeals in
section 3(3), the words ‘after consultation with the Secretary of State’;
paragraph (c) repeals in section 15A the words ‘after consultation with
the Secretary of State’; paragraph (d) repeals in section 36(1) the words
‘after consultation with the Secretary of State’; paragraph (e) substitutes
in section 51(1) the word ‘Department’ for the words ‘Secretary of State’;
and paragraph (f) repeals in section 67(5) the words ‘after consultation
with the Secretary of State’.]
(2)
(a) [Repeals section 3 of the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen)
Act 1979.]
(b) [Spent]
PART 6 – MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

16 Indemnity

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the Department of
Economic Development shall not, nor shall any member, officer or
person acting pursuant to any authority or delegation conferred by the
Department, be liable to any action, suit or proceeding for, or in respect
of, any act or matter done or omitted to be done in good faith in the
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exercise, or purported exercise, of the functions conferred by or under
any shipping legislation.2

(2) In subsection (1), “shipping legislation” means —
(a)
(i) the Fishing Vessels (Safety Provisions) (Isle of Man) Act 1974;
(ii) the Merchant Shipping (Passenger Ships’ Survey) Act 1979;
(iii) the Merchant Shipping (Detention of Ships) Act 1979;
(iv) the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979;
(v) the Anchors and Chain Cables Act 1979;
(vi) the Merchant Shipping (Load Lines) Act 1981;
(vii) the Merchant Shipping (Registration) Act 1984;
(viii) the Merchant Shipping Act 1985;
(ix) Part IV of the Oil Pollution Act 1986;
(x) the Merchant Shipping Registration Act 1991;
(xi) the Merchant Shipping Registration (Amendment) Act 1996;
(xii) this Act;
(b) any public document made under any of those Acts; and
(c) any other statutory provision relating directly or indirectly to
merchant shipping, whether passed before or after the date on
which this section comes into operation.
(3) This section shall not be treated as affecting the liability of the
Department of Economic Development under any statutory provision by
reason only that such statutory provision does not fall within
subsection (2).3

(4) Where any statutory provision apart from this section expressly
provides for —
(a) the limitation of the liability of the Department of Economic
Development in respect of any matter; or4

(b) the payment of compensation or damages by that Department in
respect of any matter,
this section shall not apply in respect of any such matter.
(5) Subsection (1) shall not have effect in respect of any act or matter done or
omitted to be done before the date on which this section comes into
operation.
(6) [Repeals section 2(5) of the Merchant Shipping (Registration) Act 1984.]
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17 General power to charge fees

(1) The Department of Economic Development may, with the consent of the
Treasury, make regulations prescribing fees to be charged by it in
respect of —
(a) the registration, survey or inspection of any vessel under any
statutory provision;
(b) the issue or recording of any certificate, licence or other document
under any statutory provision relating to vessels, shipping or
pollution of the marine environment;
(c) the doing of any other thing in pursuance of any statutory
provision relating to vessels, shipping or pollution of the marine
environment.5

(2) Regulations under this section shall not come into operation unless they
are approved by Tynwald.
(3) Except in the case of fees which fall to be paid in respect of surveys
carried out by persons who are not officers of the Department of
Economic Development, all fees received by the Department shall be
paid into the General Revenue.6

(4) The enactments mentioned in Schedule 2 are repealed to the extent
specified in column 3 of that Schedule.
18 Sums ordered to be paid leviable by distress on ship

(1) Where any court has power to make an order directing payment to be
made of any seaman’s wages, fines, or other sums of money, then if the
person so directed to pay is the master or owner of the ship, and the
money directed to be paid is not paid in accordance with the order, the
court which made the order may direct the amount remaining unpaid to
be levied by distress, of the ship and its equipment.
(2) The remedy provided by this section is in addition to any other powers
for compelling the payment of money ordered to be paid.
19 Offences in connection with passenger ships

(1) A person commits an offence if, in relation to a passenger ship, he does
any of the following things, that is to say —
(a) if, being drunk or disorderly, he has been on that account refused
admission to the ship by the owner or any person in his
employment, and, after having the amount of his fare (if he has
paid it) returned or tendered to him, nevertheless persists in
attempting to enter the ship;
(b) if, being drunk or disorderly on board the ship, he is requested by
the owner or any person in his employment to leave the ship at
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any place in the Island at which he can conveniently do so, and,
after having the amount of his fare (if he has paid it) returned or
tendered to him, does not comply with the request;
(c) if, on board the ship, after warning by the master or other officer
thereof, he molests or continues to molest any passenger;
(d) if, after having been refused admission to the ship by the owner
or any person in his employment on account of the ship being full,
and having had the amount of his fare (if he has paid it) returned
or tendered to him, he nevertheless persists in attempting to enter
the ship;
(e) if, having gone on board the ship at any place, and being
requested, on account of the ship being full, by the owner or any
person in his employment to leave the ship before it has left that
place, and having had the amount of his fare (if he has paid it)
returned or tendered to him, he does not comply with that
request;
(f) if, on arriving in the ship at a point to which he has paid his fare,
he knowingly and intentionally refuses or neglects to leave the
ship; and
(g) if, on board the ship he fails, when requested by the master or
other officer thereof, either to pay his fare or show such ticket or
other receipt, if any, showing the payment of his fare, as is usually
given to persons travelling by and paying their fare for the ship;
but his liability in respect of any such offence shall not prejudice the
recovery of any fare payable by him.
(2) A person commits an offence if, on board any passenger ship he
intentionally does or causes to be done anything in such a manner
as to —
(a) obstruct or damage any part of the machinery or equipment of the
ship, or
(b) obstruct, impede or molest the crew, or any of them, in the
navigation or management of the ship, or otherwise in the
execution of their duty on or about the ship.
(3) The master or other officer of any passenger ship, and all persons called
by him to his assistance, may, without any warrant, detain any person
who commits any offence against subsection (1) or (2) and whose name
and address are unknown to the master or officer, and deliver that
person to a constable.
(4) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (2) shall be liable,
on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000.
(5) If any person commits an offence under subsection (1) or (2) and on the
application of the master of the ship, or any other person in the
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employment of the owner thereof, refuses to give his name and address,
or gives a false name or address, that person shall be liable, on summary
conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000.
(6) In this section, ‘passenger ship’ has the same meaning as in the Merchant
Shipping (Passenger Ships’ Survey) Act 1979.
20 Amends Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979

[Amends section 3 of the Registration of Pleasure Craft Act 1974 by substituting
the definition of ‘craft’.]
21 [Amends the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen Act 1979 and

the Merchant Shipping Act 1985

(1) [Amends section 63 of the Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act
1979 by inserting subsection (1A).]
(2) [Amends section 5 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1985 by inserting
subsections (3A) and (3B).]
22 References to United Kingdom Merchant Shipping legislation

Where there is a reference in any enactment to any provision of an Act of
Parliament which is repealed and re-enacted by way of consolidation in the
Merchant Shipping Act 1995 (an Act of Parliament), that reference shall be
treated as a reference to the provision as re-enacted unless there is something in
the subject or context which is inconsistent therewith.
23 Short title and commencement

(1) This Act may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Miscellaneous
Provisions) Act 1996.
(2) This Act shall come into force on such day as the Department of Trade
and Industry may by order appoint and different days may be so
appointed for different provisions and for different purposes.7

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SCHEDULE 1

INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON SALVAGE, 1989

Section 8
PART I – TEXT OF CONVENTION

CHAPTER 1- GENERAL PROVISIONS
ARTICLE 1
Definitions
For the purpose of this Convention —
(a) Salvage operation means any act or activity undertaken to assist a
vessel or any other property in danger in navigable waters or in
any other waters whatsoever.
(b) Vessel means any ship or craft, or any structure capable of
navigation.
(c) Property means any property not permanently and intentionally
attached to the shoreline and includes freight at risk.
(d) Damage to the environment means substantial physical damage
to human health or to marine life or resources in coastal or inland
waters or areas adjacent thereto, caused by pollution,
contamination, fire, explosion or similar major incidents.
(e) Payment means any reward, remuneration or compensation due
under this Convention.
(f) Organisation means the International Maritime Organisation.
(g) Secretary-General means the Secretary-General of the
Organisation.
ARTICLE 2
Application of the Convention
This Convention shall apply whenever judicial or arbitral proceedings relating to
matters dealt with in this Convention are brought in a State Party.
Schedule 1
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ARTICLE 3
Platforms and drilling units
This Convention shall not apply to fixed or floating platforms or to mobile offshore
drilling units when such platforms or units are on location engaged in the exploration,
exploitation or production of sea-bed mineral resources.
ARTICLE 4
State-owned vessels
1. Without prejudice to article 5, this Convention shall not apply to warships or
other non-commercial vessels owned or operated by a State and entitled, at the time of
salvage operations, to sovereign immunity under generally recognised principles of
international law unless that State decides otherwise.
2. Where a State Party decides to apply the Convention to its warships or other
vessels described in paragraph 1, it shall notify the Secretary-General thereof
specifying the terms and conditions of such application.
ARTICLE 5
Salvage operations controlled by public authorities
1. This Convention shall not affect any provisions of national law or any
international convention relating to salvage operations by or under the control of
public authorities.
2. Nevertheless, salvors carrying out such salvage operations shall be entitled to
avail themselves of the rights and remedies provided for in this Convention in respect
of salvage operations.
3. The extent to which a public authority under a duty to perform salvage
operations may avail itself of the rights and remedies provided for in this Convention
shall be determined by the law of the State where such authority is situated.
ARTICLE 6
Salvage contracts
1. This Convention shall apply to any salvage operations save to the extent that a
contract otherwise provides expressly or by implication.
2. The master shall have the authority to conclude contracts for salvage operations
on behalf of the owner of the vessel. The master or the owner of the vessel shall have
the authority to conclude such contracts on behalf of the owner of the property on
board the vessel.
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3. Nothing in this article shall affect the application of article 7 nor duties to
prevent or minimise damage to the environment.
ARTICLE 7
Annulment and modification of contracts
A contract or any terms thereof may be annulled or modified if —
(a) the contract has been entered into under undue influence or the
influence of danger and its terms are inequitable; or
(b) the payment under the contract is in an excessive degree too large
or too small for the services actually rendered.
CHAPTER II- PERFORMANCE OF SALVAGE OPERATIONS
ARTICLE 8
Duties of the salvor and of the owner and master
1. The salvor shall owe a duty to the owner of the vessel or other property
in danger —
(a) to carry out the salvage operations with due care;
(b) in performing the duty specified in sub-paragraph (a), to exercise
due care to prevent or minimise damage to the environment;
(c) whenever circumstances reasonably require, to seek assistance
from other salvers; and
(d) to accept the intervention of other salvers when reasonably
requested to do so by the owner or master of the vessel or other
property in danger; provided however that the amount of his
reward shall not be prejudiced should it be found that such a
request was unreasonable.
2. The owner and master of the vessel or the owner of other property in danger
shall owe a duty to the salvor —
(a) to co-operate fully with him during the course of the salvage
operations;
(b) in so doing, to exercise due care to prevent or minimise damage to
the environment; and
(c) when the vessel or other property has been brought to a place of
safety, to accept re-delivery when reasonably requested by the
salvor to do so.
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ARTICLE 9
Rights of coastal States
Nothing in this Convention shall affect the right of the coastal State concerned to take
measures in accordance with generally recognised principles of international law to
protect its coastline or related interests from pollution or the threat of pollution
following upon a maritime casualty or acts relating to such a casualty which may
reasonably be expected to result in major harmful consequences, including the right of
a coastal State to give directions in relation to salvage operations.
ARTICLE 10
Duty to render assistance
1. Every master is bound, so far as he can do so without serious danger to his
vessel and persons thereon, to render assistance to any person in danger of being lost
at sea.
2. The States Parties shall adopt the measures necessary to enforce the duty set out
in paragraph 1.
3. The owner of the vessel shall incur no liability for a breach of the duty of the
master under paragraph 1.
ARTICLE 11
Co-operation
A State Party shall, whenever regulating or deciding upon matters relating to salvage
operations such as admittance to ports of vessels in distress or the provision of facilities
to salvors, take into account the need for co-operation between salvors, other interested
parties and public authorities in order to ensure the efficient and successful
performance of salvage operations for the purpose of saving life or property in danger
as well as preventing damage to the environment in general.
CHAPTER III - RIGHTS OF SALVORS
ARTICLE 12
Conditions for reward
1. Salvage operations which have had a useful result give right to a reward.
2. Except as otherwise provided, no payment is due under this Convention if the
salvage operations have had no useful result.
3. This chapter shall apply, notwithstanding that the salved vessel and the vessel
undertaking the salvage operations belong to the same owner.
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ARTICLE 13
Criteria for fixing the reward
1. The reward shall be fixed with a view to encouraging salvage operations, taking
into account the following criteria without regard to the order in which they are
presented below —
(a) the salved value of the vessel and other property;
(b) the skill and efforts of the salvors in preventing or minimising
damage to the environment;
(c) the measure of success obtained by the salvor;
(d) the nature and degree of the danger;
(e) the skill and efforts of the salvors in salving the vessel, other
property and life;
(f) the time used and expenses and losses incurred by the salvors;
(g) the risk of liability and other risks run by the salvors or their
equipment;
(h) the promptness of the services rendered;
(i) the availability and use of vessels or other equipment intended for
salvage operations;
(j) the state of readiness and efficiency of the salvor’s equipment and
the value thereof.
2. Payment of a reward fixed according to paragraph 1 shall be made by all of the
vessel and other property interests in proportion to their respective salved values.
However, a State Party may in its national law provide that the payment of a reward
has to be made by one of these interests, subject to a right of recourse of this interest
against the other interests for their respective shares. Nothing in this article shall
prevent any right of defence.
3. The rewards, exclusive of any interest and recoverable legal costs that may be
payable thereon, shall not exceed the salved value of the vessel and other property.
ARTICLE 14
Special compensation
1. If the salvor has carried out salvage operations in respect of a vessel which by
itself or its cargo threatened damage to the environment and has failed to earn a
reward under article 13 at least equivalent to the special compensation assessable in
accordance with this article, he shall be entitled to special compensation from the
owner of that vessel equivalent to his expenses as herein defined.
2. If, in the circumstances set out in paragraph 1, the salvor by his salvage
operations has prevented or minimised damage to the environment, the special
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compensation payable by the owner to the salvor under paragraph 1 may be increased
up to a maximum of 30 per cent. of the expenses incurred by the salvor. However, the
tribunal, if it deems it fair and just to do so and bearing in mind the relevant criteria set
out in article 13, paragraph 1, may increase such special compensation further, but in
no event shall the total increase be more than 100 per cent. of the expenses incurred by
the salvor.
3. Salvor’s expenses for the purpose of paragraphs 1 and 2 means the out-of-
pocket expenses reasonably incurred by the salvor in the salvage operation and a fair
rate for equipment and personnel actually and reasonably used in the salvage
operation, taking into consideration the criteria set out in article 13, paragraph 1(h), (i)
and (j).
4. The total special compensation under this article shall be paid only if and to the
extent that such compensation is greater than any reward recoverable by the salvor
under article 13.
5. If the salvor been negligent and has thereby failed to prevent or minimise
damage to the environment, he may be deprived of the whole or part of any special
compensation due under this article.
6. Nothing in this article shall affect any right of recourse on the part of the owner
of the vessel.
ARTICLE 15
Apportionment between salvors
1. The apportionment of a reward under article 13 between salvors shall be made
on the basis of the criteria contained in that article.
2. The apportionment between the owner, master and other persons in the service
of each salving vessel shall be determined by the law of the flag of that vessel. If the
salvage has not been carried out from a vessel, the apportionment shall be determined
by the law governing the contract between the salvor and his servants.
ARTICLE 16
Salvage of persons
1. No remuneration is due from persons whose lives are saved, but nothing in this
article shall affect the provisions of national law on this subject.
2. A salvor of human life, who has taken part in the services rendered on the
occasion of the accident giving rise to salvage, is entitled to a fair share of the payment
awarded to the salvor for salving the vessel or other property or preventing or
minimising damage to the environment.
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ARTICLE 17
Services rendered under existing contracts
No payment is due under the provisions of this Convention unless the services
rendered exceed what can be reasonably considered as due performance of a contract
entered into before the danger arose.
ARTICLE 18
The effect of salvor’s misconduct
A salvor may be deprived of the whole or part of the payment due under this
Convention to the extent that the salvage operations have become necessary or more
difficult because of fault or neglect on his part or if the salvor has been guilty of fraud
or other dishonest conduct.
ARTICLE 19
Prohibition of salvage operations
Services rendered notwithstanding the express and reasonable prohibition of the
owner or master of the vessel or the owner of any other property in danger which is
not and has not been on board the vessel shall not give rise to payment under this
Convention.
CHAPTER IV- CLAIMS AND ACTIONS
ARTICLE 20
Maritime lien
1. Nothing in this Convention shall affect the salvor’s maritime lien under any
international convention or national law.
2. The salvor may not enforce his maritime lien when satisfactory security for his
claim, including interest and costs, has been duly tendered or provided.
ARTICLE 21
Duty to provide security
1. Upon the request of the salvor a person liable for a payment due under this
Convention shall provide satisfactory security for the claim, including interest and
costs of the salvor.
2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, the owner of the salved vessel shall use his
best endeavours to ensure that the owners of the cargo provide satisfactory security for
the claims against them including interest and costs before the cargo is released.
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3. The salved vessel and other property shall not, without the consent of the
salvor, be removed from the port or place at which they first arrive after the
completion of the salvage operations until satisfactory security has been put up for the
salvor’s claim against the relevant vessel or property.
ARTICLE 22
Interim payment
1. The tribunal having jurisdiction over the claim of the salvor may, by interim
decision, order that the salvor shall be paid on account such amount as seems fair and
just, and on such terms including terms as to security where appropriate, as may be
fair and just according to the circumstances of the case.
2. In the event of an interim payment under this article the security provided
under article 21 shall be reduced accordingly.
ARTICLE 23
Limitation of actions
1. Any action relating to payment under this Convention shall be time-barred if
judicial or arbitral proceedings have not been instituted within a period of two years.
The limitation period commences on the day on which the salvage operations are
terminated.
2. The person against whom a claim is made may at any time during the running
of the limitation period extend that period by a declaration to the claimant. This period
may in the like manner be further extended.
3. An action for indemnity by a person liable may be instituted even after the
expiration of the limitation period provided for in the preceding paragraphs, if brought
within the time allowed by the law of the State where proceedings are instituted.
ARTICLE 24
Interest The right of the salvor to interest on any payment due under this Convention shall be
determined according to the law of the State in which the tribunal seized of the case is
situated.
ARTICLE 25
State-owned cargoes
Unless the State owner consents, no provision of this Convention shall be used as a
basis for the seizure, arrest or detention by any legal process of, nor for any
proceedings in rem against, non-commercial cargoes owned by a State and entitled, at
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the time of the salvage operations, to sovereign immunity under generally recognised
principles of international law.
ARTICLE 26
Humanitarian cargoes
No provision of this Convention shall be used as a basis for the seizure, arrest or
detention of humanitarian cargoes donated by a State, if such State has agreed to pay
for salvage services rendered in respect of such humanitarian cargoes.
ARTICLE 27
Publication of arbitral awards
States Parties shall encourage, as far as possible and with the consent of the parties, the
publication of arbitral awards made in salvage cases.
PART II – PROVISIONS HAVING EFFECT IN CONNECTION WITH

CONVENTION

Interpretation
1. In this Part any reference to a numbered article is a reference to the article of the
Convention which is so numbered.
Claims excluded from Convention
2. (1) The provisions of the Convention do not apply —
(a) to a salvage operation which takes place in inland waters of the
Island and in which all the vessels involved are of inland
navigation; and
(b) to a salvage operation which takes place in inland waters of the
Island and in which no vessel is involved.
(2) In this paragraph ‘inland waters’ does not include any waters within the
ebb and flow of the tide at ordinary spring tides or the waters of any dock which is
directly or (by means of one or more other docks) indirectly, connected with such
waters.
Assistance to persons in danger at sea
3. (1) The master of a vessel who fails to comply with the duty imposed on him
by article 10 paragraph 1 commits an offence and shall be liable —
(a) on summary conviction, to custody for a term not exceeding 6
months or a fine not exceeding £5,000 or to both;
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(b) on conviction on information, to custody for a term not exceeding
2 years or a fine, or both.
(2) Compliance by the master of a vessel with that duty shall not affect his
right or the right of any other person to a payment under the Convention or under any
contract.
The reward and special compensation: the common understanding
4. In fixing a reward under article 13 and assessing special compensation under
article 14 the court or arbitrator is under no duty to fix a reward under article 13 up to
the maximum salved value of the vessel and other property before assessing the special
compensation to be paid under article 14.
Recourse for life salvage payment
5. (1) This paragraph applies where —
(a) services are rendered wholly or in part in Manx waters in saving
life from a vessel of any nationality or elsewhere in saving life
from any Manx ship; and
(b) either —
(i) the vessel and other property are destroyed, or
(ii) the sum to which the salvor is entitled under article 16,
paragraph 2 is less than a reasonable amount for the
services rendered in saving life.
(2) Where this paragraph applies, the Department of Economic
Development may, if it thinks fit, pay to the salvor such sum or, as the case may be,
such additional sum as it thinks fit in respect of the services rendered in saving life.8

(3) In this paragraph ‘Manx ship’ means a ship registered in the Isle of Man.
Meaning of ‘judicial proceedings’
6. References in the Convention to judicial proceedings are references to
proceedings in the High Court and any reference to the tribunal having jurisdiction (so
far as it refers to judicial proceedings) shall be construed accordingly.
Meaning of ‘State Party’
7. (1) The Council of Ministers may, for the purposes of this paragraph, by
order declare that any State specified in the Order is a party to the Convention in
respect of a specified country, and subject to the provisions of any subsequent Order
made for those purposes, such an Order shall be conclusive evidence that the State is a
party to the Convention in respect of that country.
(2) In this paragraph ‘country’ includes ‘territory’.
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SCHEDULE 2

REPEAL OF ENACTMENTS ENABLING THE PRESCRIBING OF

FEES

Section 17(4)
[Sch 2 repeals the following Acts in part —
Fishing Vessels (Safety Provisions) (Isle of Man) Act 1974
Merchant Shipping (Passenger Ships’ Survey) Act 1979
Merchant Shipping (Masters and Seamen) Act 1979
Shipping Casualties (Inquiries, Investigations and Reports) Act 1979
Merchant Shipping (Load Lines) Act 1981
Merchant Shipping Act 1985
Treasury Act 1985
Oil Pollution Act 1986
Merchant Shipping Registration Act 1991]
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ENDNOTES

Table of Legislation History

Legislation Year and No Commencement






Table of Renumbered Provisions

Original Current






Table of Endnote References

1
Subs (5) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 2
Subs (1) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 3
Subs (3) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 4
Para (a) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 5
Subs (1) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 6
Subs (3) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2. 7
Subs (2) amended by SD51/97.
ADO (ss 1 to 10, 12 to 23, Sch 1, Sch 2) 1/11/1996 (SD628/96); (s 11) 1/2/2002 (SD814/01). 8
Subpara (2) amended by SD155/10 Sch 2.