Tag: maritime claims

The Japan P&I Club has issued a paper to analyze the trends and causes of large claims handled by the Club over a seven year span

Hong Kong introduces higher liability limits

Effective from 8 June 2015 Amendments to increase the limits of liability in the 1996 Protocol to amend the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims, 1976 (LLMC Protocol 1996) entered into force on 8 June 2015, raising the amount claimable for loss of life or personal injury on ships (not exceeding 2,000 gross tonnage) to 3.02 million Special Drawing Rights (SDR), up from 2 million SDR (additional amounts are claimable on larger ships).The 1976 LLMC Convention sets specified limits of liability for certain types of claims against shipowners:Claims for loss of life or personal injury, andOther claims, such as property claims (including damage to other ships, property or harbour works), delay, bunker spills, pollution damage, etc.The Convention also allows for shipowners and salvors to limit their liability except if "it is proved that the loss resulted from his personal act or omission, committed with the intent to cause such loss, or recklessly and with knowledge that such loss would probably result".Taking into account the experience of historic claims, as well as the impact of inflation rates, the limits in the LLMC Protocol 1996 were raised and subsequently adopted in 2012 by IMO's Legal Committee when it met for ...

New limits of liability enter into force

Bulk Cargoes Shortage Claims in Iran

Last year was a good year for the club with results showing a positive return on investment and a very good contribution from the underwriting side," said Lars Rhodin

To determine if claims are being processed appropriately The lead attorneys for people and businesses suing BP over last year's Gulf oil spill want a federal judge to appoint a special master to oversee the claims process.They said in court papers Monday that administrator Kenneth Feinberg has been too slow to process interim payments from the $20 billion fund that BP set up to compensate people who lost their livelihoods when crude oil gushed from BP's blown well. The payments are meant to tide people over until claims are settled.The lawyers said BP and Feinberg's Gulf Coast Claims Facility have benefited from desperate victims who choose quick, one-time payments in exchange for promises not to sue. There was no immediate ruling by the court in New Orleans.Last week, the Justice Department said an independent audit would be done to determine if claims are being processed appropriately.Feinberg said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press that the GCCF has made interim payments to more than 20,000 claimants and that there are more than 40,000 final payment offers outstanding. He said some $250 million in interim payments have been made. Feinberg said the GCCF will respond to the court filing in ...

Claims total $364,000 The International Transport Workers' Federation stated that Singapore-based Hako Offshore has settled crew-wage claims on four vessels totalling $364,000.The company has kept a pledge to clear outstanding payments by 25 June, some of which can be traced back three months.The move follows threats by the ITF to instigate legal proceedings against the 6,000-bhp anchor-handling tug supply (AHTS) vessel Hako Faithful (built 2009) when it arrived in South Africa. John Wood of the ITF mentions that South Africa continues to be seen as a favourable jurisdiction for pursuing claims.Hako acknowledged that wages were owed but described the company as being in a "tight cash environment" and seeking "everyone's assistance on this matter"."We sincerely apologise for this delay, which is unfortunate, and regret the inconvenience it has caused but we are confident that we will resolve these issues on or before 25 June," said the e-mail.Wood confirmed this week that payments had been settled for the period to the end of May for the Hako Faithful, the 4,000-bhp AHTS vessels Swordfish 1 and Swordfish 3 (both built 2010), as well as the tug Hako 60 (built 2009).The three AHTS ships are listed as belonging to Singapore-based Otto Marine, whose ...

Claims that crews have not been paid A Russian owner is facing industrial action following claims that crews have not been paid.Union officials and commercial creditors are preparing to take action against vessels controlled by Monaco-based Russian commodities exporter and bulker owner Aleksei Fedoricsev.The action is directly related to the mini-bulker fleet of Fedoricsev's former Manati Navigation and follows a change of control of that fleet that critics say was a sham.Muzzafer Civelek,who is Istanbul's ITF representator,confirms that actions are being planned if former Manati seafarers are not paid this week.Civelek mentions that this could take the form of boycotts and blacklisting or ship arrests in the jurisdiction where the former Manati ships trade.Nearly 44 seafarers are said to be owed over $140,000 in unpaid wages after being discharged in connection with a series of transactions that culminated in April.In one case, a chief engineer, Oleg Hairulin, who demanded some $52,515 in back pay on 30 March in connection with one ship handover, was allegedly dismissed on the spot and ordered confined on board his former ship, the 5,100-dwt Aleksandr Lebed (built 1985).Instead of being repatriated in the ordinary manner, Hairulin was allegedly treated to an involuntary passage from Istanbul ...