305
1 INTRODUCTION
Navigationhasalwaysbeenaccompaniedbyvarious
risks at sea [1]. The creation of a quality and safety
management system in maritime transport had a
significantimpactonthedecreaseinmarineaccidents.
[2] However, when a marine accident occurs, it
usuallyresultsinthelossordamage
oftheshiporthe
cargo transported by the ship, or in third party
liability[3,4].However,in the field of protectionof
peopleandpropertyfrompossiblerisksatsea,marine
insurance plays an important role. Therefore,
maritime navigation and ship management are
inconceivable without maritime insurance. Also,
the
ships’crewmembers[8]areanimportantfactorinthe
successful maritime navigation, wherein the ship’s
master,i.e.thepersoncommandingthecrewandall
otherpersonsonboard[9,10,19]playsacrucialrole.
The commercial success of the shipʹs navigation
depends precisely on the masterʹs
ability, expertise
andresourcefulness.Inthissense,themaster’sduties
on board are many and varied. He (Gender‐related
termsusedinthispaperreferequallytothemaleand
thefemale)isresponsibleforvoyageplanning,timely
supply of the ship, discipline on board and
compliance with prescribed standards,
people’s
safety,shipandcargosafety,etc.[16].Ingeneral,the
masterʹs duties can beclassifiedinto several groups.
One can thus make a distinction between master’s
dutiesrelatedtotheship’ssafety[7]andhisdutiesas
the shipowner’s representative [11]. Also, when it
comes to his duties in
relation to the insurance
contracts, the master’s most important duties are
those in the event of a marine accident, because
marineaccidentsare a category of insureddamages.
Inthissense,theshipʹsmaster’sroleintheeventofa
marineaccidentissignificant[4,5].Forthisreason,
it
isimportanttoclearlydeterminethecontentofallthe
masterʹsdutieswhenitcomestoconcludedinsurance
contractsandinsureddamageincurred.Thesubjectof
such contracts may includethe ship’s insurance, the
Duties of the Ship’s Master in the Event of a Maritime
Accident as a Type of Insured Loss
M.Pijaca
1
,B.Bulum
2
&Ž.Primorac
3
1
UniversityofZadar,Zadar,Croatia
2
CroatianAcademyofSciencesandArts,Zagreb,Croatia
3
UniversityofSplit,Split,Croatia
ABSTRACT:Theshipʹsmasterhasanumberofdutiesinrelationtotheship,thecargoandtheshipownerʹs
liability.Hisdutiesintheeventofamarineaccidentareparticularlyimportantsinceallmarineaccidentsoccur
asatypeofinsuredloss.
In additionto a number of general duties, someof the masterʹsspecialduties are
informingtheclassificationsocietyabouttheaccident,damagereport,cooperationwiththeinsurerʹsexpertand
informingtheP&Iclubabouttheaccident.
Thecontentofthemasterʹsdutiesisthesubjectofanalysis
ofthispaper.Therefore,thegoalofthepaperisto
analyse the content of the masterʹs duties in the event of an accident that could result in damage, i.e. the
occurrenceoftheinsuredevent.Thepurposeofthisanalysisistopointouttheimportantroleof
themasterin
thesubjectofmaritimeinsurance.
http://www.transnav.eu
the International Journal
on Marine Navigation
and Safety of Sea Transportation
Volume 17
Number 2
June 2023
DOI:10.12716/1001.17.02.06
306
insuranceofthetransportedcargo,andtheinsurance
oftheshipowner’sliability.
Therefore,thetaskisto consider and analysethe
master’sdutiesintheeventofamarineaccidentasa
typeofinsureddamage.Thepurposeofthisanalysis
istopointouttheimportanceofthemaster’s
rolein
thesubjectofmaritimeinsuranceand to instructthe
master on the proper manner of responding in the
event of insured damages occurring. In order to
achieve such a goal and purpose, common scientific
methodssuchasanalysisandsynthesismethodswill
beusedinthepaper.
2
BASICINSURANCECONTRACTSFORSHIP
NAVIGATION
Interestsexposedtomaritimerisksorinterestsrelated
tonavigationareregularlyinsured.Theinsuredrisk
has to have elements of a future, uncertain and
independenteventoftheinsuredʹswill.Namely,both
theshipandthecargo, aswellastheliabilityof the
shipowner are exposed to numerous risks. Some of
themarespecifictomaritimenavigation,whileothers
are the result of the actions, i.e. omissions of the
parties and third parties or are related to the
propertiesoftheinsureditemitself.Insuredrisksalso
includeeventsthatcouldnotbepredicted,prevented,
orcontrolledbyhumanefforts,suchaseventscaused
by force majeure. Most risks are encompassed within
the term maritime perils, and classic maritime risks
areperilsoftheseas.Eventslikethisareimportantin
theeventtoclaiminsurance[5].
Firstly,theship,thecargotransportedbytheship
andtheshipowner’sliabilitytowardsthirdpartiesare
regularly insured. [12] In a typical situation, every
shipvoyageisfollowedbythemanagementofthree
basic insurance contracts: insurance of the ship, the
cargoandthe
shipownerʹsliability[1,3,4,5,9].Each
of these insurance contracts is specific on its own
right. Also, each of these contracts is considered
legallyseparateandindependentfromtheothers.The
difference between these contracts is in the purpose
and subject of the insurance. Thus, by concluding
a
contractonshipandliabilityinsurance,theshipowner
wants to protect his interest, while by concluding a
contractontheinsuranceofthetransportedcargo,the
cargo owner transfers the risk of cargo transport to
theinsurer[5].Inthisregard,theship’smaster’srole
is twofold. Given his duty
as the shipowner’s
representative,themasterisobligedtoactinawayto
protect the shipowner’s interest. On the other hand,
duetohisspecificposition,heisobligedtoactwith
theprotectionofcargo[4].Hisdutyasacarrier,based
onthecharterpartycontract,is
totransportthecargo
anddeliveritatthespecifieddestinationinthesame
condition,typeandquantityinwhichitwasaccepted
fortransport[24].Regardlessofwhichofthesethree
insurance contracts is considered, the shipʹs master
first of all must be aware of the content of the
said
contracts and be aware of the subjects of insurance
and the risks against which they are insured.
However, regardless of the existence of these
insurances,heisobligedtoundertakeallmeasuresso
that no damage is incurred, and if it nevertheless
comestothat,tobeawareof
hisdutiesintheeventof
the occurrence of the insured event in order to
mitigatetheoccurrenceofharmfulconsequencesand
tocarryoutallactionsforthepurposeofthepayment
of damages. Therefore, it is the masterʹs duty to act
consistentlyandwithduediligenceaccordingto
the
regulationsandrulesofmaritimepractice.
2.1 Shipinsurance
Ship insurance is understood to mean a ship
insurance contract, which generally includes the
insuranceoftheshipʹshull,itsmachinery,devicesand
equipment, regular supplies of fuel, lubricants and
othershipʹsmaterials,aswellassuppliesof
foodand
drinks necessary for the shipʹs crew [3, 4, 10].
Considering the subject of insurance, this type of
insuranceisalsocalledhullandmachineryinsurance
[4,5].
Ship insurance covers therisk of physical loss or
damage to the ship as an insured object. The
shipownernormallyhas
ajustifiedinterestininsuring
theshipandanumberofotherinterestsrelatedtothe
ship.Theinsuranceoftheseinterestsiscarriedoutby
concluding a ship insurance contract or other
collateralinsurance.Theownershipoftheshipisnot
necessarily the sole criterion for assessing the
existence
ofaninterestinshipinsurance,sincelossor
damage to the ship may be incurred by the person
other than the shipowner (for example, a bank as a
mortgageeofa ship[5]orthebareboatcharterer)[9,
21,22,23].
Inshipinsurance,contractsareusuallyconcluded
according to
the insurerʹs insurance clauses. In
businesspractice,forshipstakingpartininternational
navigation,standardinsuranceclausesapplyforthis
purpose.Themostwell‐knownandwidelyapplicable
standard clauses for ship insurance are the English
instituteclausespublishedbytheInstituteofLondon
Insurers (Nowadays exist as International
Underwriting Association of London (IUA) which
wasformedon31December1998,throughthemerger
of the London International Insurance and
Reinsurance Market Association (LIRMA) and the
Institute of London Underwriters (ILU)) [3, 4]. The
basic clauses for ship insurance established in the
practice of ship insurance are the Institute Hull
Clauses,namely:InstituteTime–Clauses–Hulls[25]
and Institute Voyage Clauses – Hulls [26]. The
aforementioned institute clauses provide the widest
coverage, and insurance based thereon is known as
ʺfullcoverʺinsurance.Inadditiontoinstituteclauses
whichprovidefullcoverage,therearealsothosewith
narrower coverage
(restricted perils) [25, 26]. Also,
other standard ship insurance clauses exist
worldwide,e.g.AmericanInstituteHullClauses[27],
InstituteStandardDutchHullForm[28].
2.2 Cargoinsurance
Cargoinsuranceisunderstoodtomeanacontractfor
theinsuranceofcargotransportedbyship.Therefore,
thesubjectofinsuranceiscargo
exposedtomaritime
transportrisks. The cargo istransportedpursuantto
thecharterparty contract, and therefore thecargois
anessentialelementthereof.Intheinsurancecontract,
307
it is necessary to indicate the type and quantity of
cargo, but it is not necessary to indicate the quality
and condition of the insured cargo. Any failure to
mark the insured item is detrimental to the insured
party, so it is important that the insured item is
specifiedin
the insurance contract so that it may be
identifiedintheeventofdamage[4,5,20].
This type of insurance allows that (aside from
cargo)theexpectedprofit,insurancecosts,freightand
other costs also be reported as an insurance subject
within the said contract. All these values may
be
calculatedasasingleinsuredsum[4,5,20].
As with the insurance of ships in international
navigation and the insurance of international
maritime cargo, institute clauses apply. Institute
clausesforinsuringcargoagainstmaritime risks are
known as Institute Cargo Clauses (A), (B) and (C).
Theseinstituteclausesdiffer
accordingtothescopeof
coverage, and their application depends on the
parties’contract.AccordingtoInstituteCargoClauses
(A),allrisksareinsured,i.e.theyprovidethewidest
scope coverage, while according to Institute Cargo
Clauses(B)and(C),namedperilsareinsured[3,4,5,
6].Damagesexcluded
frominsurancearedealt with
in General Exclusion Clauses, which exclude certain
damages. Simultaneously, additional risk insurance
such as Malicious Damage Clause, Institute Theft,
Pilferage and Non‐Delivery Clause and Institute
Replacement Clause can be contracted. The purpose
of these clauses is to supplement the basic institute
clauseswithrespectto
specialcircumstances[20].
2.3 Shipownerʹsliabilityinsurance
Liability insurance is understood to mean an
insurance contract dealing with the insured party’s
(theshipowner’s)liabilityfordamagecausedtothird
parties. By concluding a liability insurance contract,
the shipowner protects his own interest in such
situations where he is obliged
to indemnify a third
party for the damages incurred for which the
shipownerispotentiallyliable[1,3,4,5,6,20].
Thereareseveralpossiblesourcesofliabilityinthe
performanceofthenavigationactivitiesatsea.These
include the contractual liability, third party liability
andtheliabilitytowardsone
ʹsowncrew.Contractual
liability arises from the violation of contractual
obligations (for example arising from charter party
contracts or passenger transport contracts). Third
party liability is based on tort against a person not
referred to in the contract (for example, damage
causedbyashipcollision,damagetothe
dockingarea
and port facilities, wreck removal, pollution of the
marine environment), whereas liability towards the
crewimpliesthedutyoftheshipownertobearcertain
costs of the crew. For each of the listed types of
liability, the shipowner holds a justified interest in
insurance. Such interests are insured by
means of
membershipintheP&Iclub.
The P&I club comprises special organizations for
themutualinsuranceofshipowners,whosefullname
is Protection and Indemnity Association. These
organizations operate according to their own rules
(clubrules)andhaveanumberofcorrespondentsin
all major world ports for the
purpose of providing
assistancetotheirmembers[29].Duetotheprovision
of insurance by means of membership in the P&I
Club,shipowner’sliabilityinsuranceisalsocalledP&I
insurance[4].
Althoughoneofthebasicprinciplesofinsuranceis
the principle of voluntariness, when general interest
callsforit,in
certaincases theconclusionofliability
insurancecontractsiscompulsory.Liabilityinsurance
is compulsory when the public interest dictates the
protection of third parties to whom the institute of
direct action against the insurer guarantees a secure
payment of damages [17]. Several international
conventionsstipulate the cases in which the
liability
insurance of shipowners is compulsory, namely:
International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil
Pollution Damage [30], International Convention on
CivilLiabilityforBunkerOilPollutionDamage[31],
International Convention Relating to the Liability of
the Operator of a Nuclear Ship [32], Athens
Convention Relating to the Carriage of Passengers
and
Their Luggage by Sea [33], International
Convention on the Removal of Wrecks [34].
Compulsory insurance is provided for by the
Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea
Convention, which, however, has not entered into
force[35].Also,theMaritimeLabourConvention[36]
stipulatesmandatoryinsuranceforrepatriation costs
intheevent
thattheshipownerabandonstheshipand
crew,aswellasmandatoryliabilityinsuranceagainst
thecrewforcontractualliabilityduetobodilyinjury
and death, as well as costs in the event of crew
abandonment[3,5].
3 TYPESOFMASTERʹSDUTIESINRELATIONTO
BASICINSURANCECONTRACTS
Ship’s
master’s duties in case of an insured event,
whichwascontractedbyconcludingoneofthebasic
insurancecontracts,maybeclassifiedintogeneraland
special[4,5].
Analysingthecontentofthemasterʹsdutiesincase
ofaninsuredevent,wenoticethatwithinthegeneral
duties of
the master, the most prominent duties are
thoserelatedtotheknowledgeofthecontentsofthe
ship insurance contract and P&I insurance, the
maintenanceofobligatorycertificates,theobligations
according to the International Safety Management
Code(ISM))[48]andtheInternationalShipandPort
FacilitySecurityCode(ISPS))[49],andtheprocesses
of conducting extraordinary rescue measures,
reporting the accident to the shipowner, describing
theeventintheshipʹslogbook,preparingandkeeping
documentation and taking extraordinary rescue
measures[4,5].
Amongthespecialdutiesofthemasterinrelation
totheinsuranceoftheship,themostprominentones
are those
related to reporting the accident to the
classification society, compiling a damage report,
cooperatingwiththeinsurer’sexpert,obtainingoffers
forshiprepairandtemporaryshiprepair.Inrelation
to cargo insurance, the special duties of the shipʹs
master are conscientious care of the cargo, and the
supervision and
control of the shipperʹs data on the
cargo.Finally,themasterʹsspecialdutiesinrelationto
P&I insurance are reporting the accident to the P&I
308
club,askingtheinsurertoacceptliabilityandsending
lettersofprotest[5].
3.1 Master’sgeneraldutiesincaseofaninsuredevent
The ship’s master’s general duties in case of an
insured event, as their name suggests, apply
generally, i.e. regardless of the type of insurance.
Therefore,theyapply
equallytotheinsuranceofthe
ship, cargo insurance and the insurance of the
shipowner’sliability.
In general, the master should primarily be aware
thecontentoftheship,cargoandshipownerʹsliability
insurance contracts. He should also be well
acquainted with the structure and conditions of the
P&I
club,tobeawareoftherulesoftheclubandto
possess information about the list of club
correspondents who provide assistance in the ports
[4]. The rules of the club, along with the list of
correspondents, may be found in special booklets
printed by theclubswhich are available
onboard or
online.Accordingtooneoftheclub’srules,themaster
is responsible to ensure that the prescribed
seaworthiness certificates are issued for the ship
under his command [29]. A prescribed number of
certificates attesting the compliance with the
regulations must be issued for any ship of a certain
typeandmustbeavailabletobeshownattherequest
ofthecompetentauthorities[13].Amongtheseriesof
certificateswhichmustbeissuedforvarioustypesof
ships, the master holds a particular duty regarding
safemanagement(ISMcode)andsecurity(ISPScode)
[48,49]. The term seaworthiness is
expanded by the
requirementsofthesecodes,andpursuanttothem,if
the ship meets the conditions, a corresponding
certificate is issued as proof of compliance with the
regulations. The purpose of the ISM code is to
improveproceduresonboardinordertoensurethe
safetyofalloperations
relatedtotheuseofships,and
toprotecttheenvironmentfrompollution[47],while
thepurposeoftheISPScodeistogovernthesecurity
organizationontheship,thepreparationoftheshipʹs
security protection plan and the process of
appointment of persons responsible for security
protection[9].
Inthesystemforsafemanagement,the
masterisresponsibleformakingdecisionsregarding
safety and pollution prevention, and is obliged to
report any deficiency or accident suffered to the
appointedperson[7,18].
Ingeneral,itisthemasterʹsdutytoundertakeall
reasonable measures to guarantee the
safety of the
ship, and in case of occurrence of events which put
theshiporthepeopleonboardinperil,heisobliged
to undertake rescue measures, and, if necessary,
sacrificingthecargo,shipdevices,equipment,etc.He
is obliged to report to the shipowner in writing any
losses
or damages to the ship and cargo, or the
existence ofany liability towardsthird parties. Only
in exceptional cases is the shipowner allowed to
authorizethemastertodirectlyreporttheaccidentto
the insurer. If the accident was reported to the
shipowner verbally, the master must subsequently
draw
up a written notification. In any case, such
notification should be concise, objective and fact‐
based. Sketches, photographs or similar materials
should be attached to the written notification.
However, in some ports photographing or video
recordingisprohibited,somastersmayhaveissuesin
fulfilling this duty therefore. Furthermore, it is
the
masterʹs duty to record the information on the
incidentintheshipʹslogbookassoonaspossible[13].
Whenitcomestodamagetotheshipʹsmachinery,itis
alsoimportanttoenterdataintheenginelog,which
mustbeenteredbythechief
engineer.Theentriesin
the shipʹs logbook and engine log must not be
contradictory, in other words, their contents must
match. In addition to the shipʹs logbook and engine
log, there are other data and records on the ship
which shall be used as proof of damage incurrence.
These
may include documents accompanying cargo
transportation, notes on maintenance of shipʹs
storerooms,notesonventilation,etc.Inthisregard,it
isthemasterʹsdutytokeepandstorecopiesofletters
and various other written documents and materials
relatedtomaritimeenterpriseandshipmanagement.
3.2 Specialduties
ofthemasterincaseofaninsuredevent
Themasterʹsspecialdutiesincaseofaninsuredevent
can be classified into his duties in relation to the
insurance of the ship, cargo insurance and the
insurance of the shipownerʹs liability. According to
this classification, it is necessary
to determine and
analyse the content of his duties with regard to a
particulartypeofinsurance.
3.2.1 Dutiesofthemasterincaseofaninsuredeventin
connectionwiththeshipinsurancecontract
Incaseofaninsuredeventinconnectionwiththe
shipʹsinsurancecontract,based
onthemasterʹsreport
on the accident, an important duty is to report the
accident to the classification society of the ship and
themaritimesafetyauthorityofflagstate[4,5].The
classification society of the shipʹs flag state acts
accordingtostandardmaritimeregulations[2],most
of
which were adopted within the framework given
bytheInternationalMaritimeOrganization(IMO).As
aspecializedagencyoftheUnitedNations,theIMOis
responsible for the activities necessary for the
development and adoption of regulations and
standards related to the construction and equipping
of ships,theirinspectionsandmanagement,
andthe
certification of seafarers [6, 8]. Examples of IMO
standards include: The International Convention for
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL
73/78) [37], The International Convention for the
Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS 74) [38], The
International Convention on Standards of Training,
CertificationandWatchkeeping for Seafarers(STCW
95) [39]. Each of the listed conventions contains
requirements for obtaining certain certificates for a
certaintypeofship[13].Finally,ifthereisdamageto
theshipduetoamarineaccident,thesameaffectsthe
seaworthiness of the ship, which is relevant for the
classification society. Without repairing
the damage
andre‐inspectingtheship,theshipisnotallowedto
navigate, so maintaining the shipʹs class is an
importantsegmentofnavigationsafety[41].
In relation to the shipʹs insurance contract, the
masterisobligedtodrawupawrittenreportonthe
damage based on
his own observation immediately
afterthemarineaccident.Thesamereportisusedas
309
evidenceinthecaseofthepaymentofdamagesfrom
insurance. The masterʹs statements in the written
reportshouldbeprecise,trueandbasedonthefactual
situation,andanyomissioninthewayof compiling
thereportmayresultinthefailureintheexerciseof
rightsfrom
theinsurancecontract[4,5].
Uponbeingnotifiedaboutthemarineaccident,the
insurerwithwhomtheshipʹsinsurancecontractwas
concludedmustappointaninsurancesurveyorwhose
role is to determine the amount of damage by
inspectingtheship[4,5].Surveyorsarethirdparties,
in relation to
the parties to the insurance contract,
who use their professional knowledge or special
experience to establish certain facts [42, 43]. In this
sense, it is the masterʹs duty to cooperate with the
surveyorandmakeitpossibleforthemtoinspectthe
shipʹs damage and to provide them with
the shipʹs
recordsandotherdocumentation[4,5].
Afterthesurveyorʹsinspectionofthedamage,the
nextdutyofthemasteristoparticipateinobtaining
bids for repairing the ship and procuring parts and
equipment, as well as contact with a potential ship
repairer.Obtainedbidsfor
therepairoftheshipare
submittedtotheinsurer,whodoesnothavetoaccept
thereceivedoffers,butcanhimselfrequestnewoffers
ifforsomereasonthereceivedonesdonotsuitthem.
However,inordertomaintaintheshipʹsclass,itisthe
duty of the
master to take actions to make the ship
seaworthy without delay. If the conclusive repair of
the ship is not possible,a temporary repair must be
undertaken, its purpose being to make the ship
seaworthyuntiltheconclusiverepairiscarriedout.
3.2.2 Dutiesofthemasterincaseof
aninsuredin
connectionwiththecargoinsurancecontract
Fortheentiredurationandimplementationofthe
charter party contract, the shipownerʹs duty is to
transportthecargowithoutdelayandinthecondition
in which it was received for transportation. The
shipowner fulfills this duty primarily with the
assistance
ofthemaster,whoistheresponsibleperson
onboard.Themasterisobligedtoactwithduecare
both before and during the loading of the cargo in
ordertodeterminewhethertheshipisreadyforcargo
loadingandnavigation.Forthisreason,theshipand
itsequipment
shouldbeinspectedregularly,andany
defects should be promptly eliminated. In order to
fulfilltheobligationsfromthecharterpartycontract,
preparatory work for cargo loading should be done
beforetheloadingofthecargo.Itisthemasterʹsduty
to prepare the ship’s storeroom and clear it of
all
previouscargoinordertoavoidthecontaminationof
thenewcargo[44].Particularattentionshouldbepaid
to the waterproofing of the storehouse hatch cover,
theventilationofthecargoduringthejourneyandthe
monitoringofthetemperatureofthecargo.Inthecase
of ships with
a refrigeration device or other
specialized equipment, the air pressure in the tanks
shouldbetakenintoaccount,whereasinthecaseof
stowed cargo, the manner of stowage should be
choseninsuchawaythatthecargodoesnotcollapse
ormove[4,5].Thevaryingparticularsofeach
typeof
cargo should be taken into account, because any
action contrary to its particulars will affect the
fulfillmentofthecharterpartycontract[45].
Afterloadingthecargo,theshipownerisobliged
to issue a bill of lading confirming that he has
receivedthecargofromtheshipperfor
transportation
[46]. Considering the probative value of the bill of
lading,itscontentinrelationtothecargoelementshas
aspecialmeaningforinsurancerelationship.Inorder
toprotecttheinterestsoftheshipowner,themasteris
obliged to check the veracity of the shipperʹs data
regardingthetype,
quantityandothercharacteristics
of the cargo when issuing the bill of lading.
Determiningthequantityforsomecargoisrelatively
simple,whileforothercargoitmaybecomplex.This
mayresultinthereceivermakingaclaimfordamages
due to the lack of cargo. For this reason,
it is
recommendedthatthemasterteststheshipperʹsdata
on the amount of cargo before the loading is
completed by reading the ship’s draft. If there is a
difference between the shipperʹs statement and the
draft reading, the reasons for this should be
determinedwiththeshipper’sassistance
[4].
Whenunloadingandhandingoverthecargotothe
receiver,themasterisobligedtoensurethatthecargo
is handed over after the identity of the receiver has
beenestablishedbyexaminationofthebilloflading.
Cargo may not be handed over without a bill of
lading.
Ifforbusinessreasonsshipownerhasinterest
in doing so, it is recommended that before the
handover of the cargo he requests a letter of
indemnity certified by thebank [46]. An example of
suchaletterisregularly found withtherulesofthe
P&I club [29]. The shipowneris
responsible to hand
overthecargoatthedestinationinthequantityand
conditioninwhichhereceiveditfortransport[14,15].
Otherwise,assumingthatnospecificjustifiablereason
exists,theshipowner may facea claim for damages.
Documentsandotherevidencewhichcanpotentially
serve to defend the
shipowner against unfounded
claims may be of great significance in that sense. In
doing so, the master has a crucial role in obtaining
documents.
3.2.3 Themaster’sdutiesincaseoftheinsuredeventin
connectionwiththeshipownerʹsliabilityinsurance
contract
Inadditiontotheshipowner,themasteris
obliged
toreportthe accidentwhichmayresultina liability
claim to the P&I club. For this purpose, he shall
contact a correspondent from the list of
correspondents provided by the P&I club. The
representativeoftheclubshouldbeinformedwithout
delay,especiallyiftheeventisof
suchanaturethatit
requires urgent taking of the necessary legal and
proceduralactions.Thebestexampleforthatisarrest
of the ship.Arrest is the security measure regulated
by the international convention on Arrest of Ships
[40].
Inliabilityinsurancerelations,theinsuredpartyis
obliged to r equest
the consent of the insurer and
follow his instructions prior to recognizing his
liabilityfor the paymentofdamages.Otherwise,the
insurermayrefusetosettletheclaim,infullorapart
ofit,ifheisabletoprovethattheinsuredpartywas
notliableforthe
resultingdamageorthathisliability
was less than what he admits. This means that
without the consent of the shipowner and the club,
themasterisnotauthorizedtoenterintoasettlement
310
oradmitresponsibilityforthedamage[3,4,5].Failure
to do so would be contrary to his duties as the
shipownerʹsrepresentative.
Themasterʹslettersofprotestaddressedtoathird
partiesinformingthemthattheyareconsideredliable
for the damage, are also treated as significant
evidenceinliabilityrelations.Thisdutyofthemaster
derivesfromthegeneraldutyofthemastertoactto
prevent the occurrence of damage or to reduce
damagewhichhasalreadyoccurred.
4 ESPECIALLYONTHEDUTIESOFTHEMASTER
INCERTAINTYPESOFMARINEACCIDENTS
Wewillrefer
tothedutiesofthemasterincaseofship
collisionsandofmarineenvironmentpollution.
In the event of a ship collision, the master is
obligedtoimmediatelyreportthistotheshipowner.
Based on the notification received from the master,
theshipownermustnotifytheshipʹsinsurerand
the
P&I club about the accident suffered. In agreement
with the shipowner, the master may also directly
contact the P&I club, but such cases are effectively
rare.
Intheeventofacollisionwithashipcommanded
by the master, the damage to the ship and cargo
incurred in the
collision must be professionally and
competently inspected (if it is a cargo ship), and a
writtenreportmustbedrawnup.Inthefirstsafeport,
the master must report to the correspondent of the
P&Iclubwhosemembershiptheshipholds,whowill
provide them with the necessary legal or
other
assistance.Theshipʹsinsurerwillappointasurveyor
to inspect theshipʹs physical damage. The master is
obliged to assist the insurerʹs surveyor when
determining the damage so that their reports are
completeandaccurate.
Asinthecaseofacollision,aswellasin
thecaseof
pollutionofthe marineenvironment,theshipowner,
basedonthenotificationhereceivesfromthemaster,
must report the accident to the P&I club whose
membershiptheshipholds.Thiscanalsobedoneby
themasterdirectlyinagreementwiththeshipowner.
Intheeventofan
oil spillfromtheship,themaster
mustimmediatelynotifythenearestrepresentativeof
theP&IClub,whowilladvisehimonhowtoreport
the accident to the local authorities and obtain the
necessarylegalassistance.Hewillassistthemasterin
organizing damage inspections, in the selection of
surveyors and regarding relations with local
authorities.Sincethe oil spill risk is covered byP&I
insurance, the shipʹs master should fully follow the
instructions of the P&I club or its representative in
ordertoavoidpossiblelaterclaimsbytheinsurer.
5 CONCLUSIONS
The importance of marine insurance is
so great that
the performance of navigation activities is
inconceivable without it. Ships, as well as the cargo
theytransport,areexposedtonumerousrisksduring
navigation.Thus,inmaritime practice, it iscommon
for every voyage of the ship to be accompanied by
three basic insurance contracts: ship, cargo
and
shipownerʹs liability. We emphasized that these are
basic insurance contracts for ship navigation.
Regardlessoftheinterestsofthe shipownerand the
owner of the cargo to conclude an insurance
agreement,theshipʹsmasterhasthemostimportant
roleintheeventofanaccidentwhichcouldresult
in
lossordamagetotheshiporcargo,aswellasliability
tothirdparties.Namely,wedeterminedandanalysed
thecontentoftheentirerangeofdutiesofmastersin
connection with basic insurance agreements. We
classifiedtheirdutiesintogeneralandspecialduties.
Thegeneraldutiesof
themasterrefertoalltypesof
insurance, and as the name suggests, they apply
generally.Someofthesedutiesofamasterarealmost
self‐evident. This includes the duties to notify the
shipowner immediately after the accident, to
undertake all reasonable measures on the spot to
guarantee the safety
of the ship, and to enter
information in the shipʹs books. On the other hand,
special duties are related to the particulars of each
typeofinsurance.Incaseofaninsuredeventinthe
senseoftheshipinsuranceagreement,itisimportant
tocooperatewiththeclassification
society,aswellas
the surveyor in charge of damage assessment. The
masterʹs duties are especially important when
insuring the cargo and possible cargo damage,
becausethemasterʹsnegligentbehaviourinrelationto
the cargo can lead to non‐payment of insured
damages. In the case of liability insurance,
the
masterʹslettersofprotestaddressedtothepersonshe
considers responsible for the damage is of great
significance. His duties in case of collision and
environmental pollution are similar to other general
andspecialduties.
All of the master’s actions following an accident
should aim to guarantee safety
because safety is the
primeconcernonboard.Finally,allthemaster’sduties
shouldhavetheinsurancepaymentasagoal,whichis
why insurance is contractedinthefirst place. All of
theaboveemphasizestheimportanceofthemaster’s
roleinthesubjectofmaritimeinsurance.
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