ASSISTANCE AND SALVAGE

Salvage
Salvage : Maritime salvage means the saving of life
as maritime property imperiled at sea.
A convention called International Convention for the
unification of certain rules of law respecting
assistance and Salvage at Sea 1910 deals with
this.
India ratified it in 1913.
An amendment was made in 1968 which makes it
applicable to war ships and government ships also.
In 1989 a new convention called the International
Convention on Salvage was adopted. It came in to
force on 14th July 1996. India ratified in Oct1995.

Salvage, Contd:
This new convention does not differentiate between
assistance and salvage.
Examples of salvage1. Towing a helpless vessel into port.
2. Refloating a stranded or sunken vessel.
3. Recovery of cargo from a damaged/sunken vessel.
4. Extinguishing fire on board.
5. Measures taken to keep a sinking vessel afloat.
6. Holding or removing a vessel adrift from its moorings.
7. Initiating, procuring or bringing assistance to a
distressed vessel etc.

Article 1-34 Salvage convention

1989.
Please refer to Salvage Convention
1989.

Points common to the 1910 and

1989 Conventions
1. The Salvage service must be rendered voluntarily. In
other words it should not be a part of a pre-existing
duty or contract. For example the crew or the pilot of a
ship in distress or the owner, master or crew of a tug
under contract to tow a ship cannot claim for salvage
remuneration as they have not acted voluntarily and
also beyond the scope of their duty.
2. The subject of salvage must be endangered i.e those
who claim for salvage must establish that the property
was in danger when the services were rendered.
3. The service must be subject of recognized maritime
interest , eg ship, cargo, life, freight etc.

Points common to the 1910 and

1989 Conventions, Contd:
4. The service must be successful. The
right to salvage and remuneration is
based on the principle of no cure, no
pay. In other words no salvage claims
can be maintained unless the
maritime property is in danger and at
least some part of it is saved.
5. The salvage remuneration is paid
out of the value of the property
preserved to its owners.

Salvage Remuneration
Although courts deal with salvage matters, however most of the
salvage awards are effected privately without legal proceedings.
For this purpose it is usual to adopt the Lloyds form of salvage
agreement. For determining salvage remuneration the important
factors taken in to account are:a. The nature of the salvage service, the degree of danger from
which the life or property was salved and the value of property
finally preserved to the owner.
b. Since the remuneration is paid out of the value of the property
salved, the salvage award must always be less than that value.
c. The general rule is that those who have benefited from the
salvage services must contribute towards salvage award readily
according to the salved value of the property. This also depends
on the different degree of risks to which each interest (Ship,
Cargo, Freight) is exposed.

Salvage Remuneration,
Contd:
d. The apportionment of the salvage award between
owner, master and other persons in each salving
vessel will be determined by the law of the flag
state of the vessel.
e. Remuneration is due even if salvage services are
rendered by or to vessels belonging to the same
owners.
f. Persons who have taken part in the salvage
operation without the permission of the vessel or
part of the vessel being salved, except in cases of
unreasonable prohibition from the salved vessels,
shall have no right to any remuneration.

Salvage Remuneration,
Contd:
g. If several Salvors are participating then the
award will be in proportion to their efforts.
h. The convention lays down international norms
for rendering assistance to vessels in distress
at sea and for the payment of adequate
remuneration.
i. It also imposes the obligation on the master of
the ship without endangering his own ship, to
render assistance to ship/persons in distress
even though an enemy found at sea in danger.

1989 Convention

The master of the salved vessel will have the

authority to conclude salvage contracts on behalf of
the owners of the vessel as well as the owner of the
property of the vessel.
A contract or any salvage contract terms may be
modified or nullified by a court if:a. The contract was agreed under undue influence or
the influence of danger and its terms are not equal
OR
b. The payment agreed is very excessive or too small
compared to the degree of danger and the services
actually rendered.

1989 Convention, Contd:

No salvage remuneration is due from persons
whose lives are saved except as in the National
law. (The Indian MSA deals with salvage in
sections 402-403-404) of Part XIII.
Salvage in respect of saving of life when payable
by owner of the vessel and shall be on priority to
all other claims of salvage.
In India disputes for salvage are settled by a
judicial magistrate of 1st class or metropolitan
magistrate, if the amount is not more than Rs.
10,000/- or the high court if the amount is higher.
This convention as well as the Indian MSA applies
to salvage services rendered by or to a war ship

Special Compensation
Special compensation is payable if the salvor has prevented or
minimized damage to the environment even though there is no
useful result of the salvage operation.
This compensation is equivalent to its expenses and fair rate.
This compensation is equivalent to his expenses and a fair rate for
equipment and manpower involved and used.
This compensation can be increased by 30% maximum of Salvors
expenses or up to even 100% of Salvors expenses for a major
pollution incident. In case the Salvor has been negligent and
thereby failed to prevent or minimize damage to the environment
then he may be deprived of all or part of the special
compensation.
In the year 2000 a new LOF 2000 has been published which has an
important clause called the SCOPIC clause which is the Special
Compensation P & I Club Clause.

Thank You !!!