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Specialists in Shipping, Marine Insurance & Transit Law, London |
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Autumn Newsletter 2006The usual discussions concerning shipping and insurance activities continued through the summer holiday period (unusually warm for London). ENVIROMENTAL SALVAGEThis is still a hot topic for salvors. At the Oil Pollution 2006 Conference held in London in May the ISU confirmed that the Lloyd?s Salvage Group had agreed to establish a sub-committee to consider ISU proposals for parallel remuneration for ?Environmental Awards?. The ISU?s position is that Governments need to be pressed to become involved in setting up a separate basis of remuneration for this area of salvage and that Governments should accept initial responsibility for payment to salvors. Discussions will continue within the Salvage Group Committee and we will of course keep readers updated. LOFThe ISU has also constituted a new Lloyd?s Open Form sub-committee and has introduced an LOF levy whereby every ISU member contributes ?1,000 per Lloyd?s form award to a new fund established to maintain and promote the LOF contract. The figures for the number of LOF contracts entered into this year are considerably down on those for previous years. Lloyd?s have so far been advised of 61 contracts this year, with Scopic being invoked in 11 of them (as compared to 109 for the whole of last year, with Scopic being invoked on 20 occasions). CARRIAGE OF DRI (DIRECT REDUCED IRON)Despite many problems being encountered in the 1990s, there had subsequently been relatively few claims involving the carriage of this commodity until the last couple of years. However, losses and claims have begun to mount again and discussions regarding the methods needed for safe carriage of DRI are ongoing, particularly involving the IMO. The IMO has recently discussed this issue whilst reconsidering the Code of Safe Practice for Solid Bulk Cargoes (?The BC Code?). A sub-committee on DRI met in September. If any readers have particular issues regarding methods of carriage of DRI and/or problems with DRI consignments, we suggest that they contact Mr Cliff Mullins at Minton Treharne & Davies (cliff.mullins@minton.co.uk) who sits upon this sub-committee. Cliff can then be fully ?armed? with any comments. INSURANCEResponses have now been submitted by various interested parties to the Law Commission?s scoping paper on insurance contract law. Following these responses the Commission has prepared an issue paper on misrepresentation and non-disclosure. A second issue paper on warranties is expected shortly. Further papers considering the topics of agency and post-contractual good faith should be published early next year - prior to the issue of a full consultation paper in the summer of 2007. The Commission is planning to have a draft insurance contract law bill in place during 2010. We will of course keep readers updated. However, should you wish to discuss the responses and proposals that have been put forward as part of the consultation exercise, please do not hesitate to let us know. FSA/CONTRACT CERTAINTYThe 2 year deadline imposed by the FSA for the Lloyd?s and company insurance markets to take their own steps to bring contract certainty to all insurance contracts expires in December of this year. Most insurers are taking steps to revisit policy wordings and summaries of cover and progress towards full contract certainty is moving apace. However, should the FSA consider that the market has not taken all the necessary steps by December, it will become involved in forcing compliance. Accordingly, if any readers have not yet taken steps to ensure that the insurance products they offer are FSA compliant and meet with contract certainty principles, they should proceed to do so without delay. November 2006 Return to News |
Casualty Reports
Added: 06 September 2010
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