Increased liabilities under OSRO contracts
Last week the Club published
circular 10/11in respect of the increased liabilities that Members may potentially incur under the amended contract terms of one of the US based oil spill response organisations (OSRO). We strongly recommend all Members who might be affected to refer to this circular and check their vessel response plan arrangements.
Under new US Coast Guard requirements, tank vessel response plans (VRPs) must cite an oil spill response organisation (OSRO) with capability for applying dispersants by air. The deadline for compliance is the
30th September 2011when operators of tank vessels will need to incorporate such dispersant capability in their response plans.
Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC), one of the two largest US based OSROs, has amended its service agreement for tank vessels by addition of a
'dispersant addendum'. This addendum to their contract terms contains indemnities that do not conform to the International Group's US VRP guidelines ( published in
Club Circular 6/09-June 2009).
Clean Islands Council, the provider of compliant response services for ships calling at Hawaii, also offers a contract that does not conform with the US VRP guidelines.
For both of these organisations it will be necessary to purchase additional insurance in order to ensure full P&I coverage. Details can be obtained through the Club via your usual underwriting contact.
There is no similar requirement for non tank vessels and most VRPs for non tank vessels are therefore unlikely to refer to dispersant capability in their citation of MSRC, in which case no action is required. Members should, however, confirm this by directly checking their VRPs or consulting their plan writers.
We strongly recommend all Members who might be affected to refer to this
circular 10/11and check their vessel response plan arrangements.
You may also be interested in:
The UK Club Correspondent, GAC Shipping Ltd, would like to remind Members of the commencement of bulk crew changes of international seafarers from 22nd December 2020, through the Offshore Crew Transit Hub (OCTH) operated by a Public-Private-Partnership (PPP).
ECDIS Detention data by AMSA PSC
12/01/2021
When using the ECDIS, it is necessary to know specifically what the problems for navigators are; in this article Captain Sekine extracts the problems related to the use of ECDIS in regard to the current status of ships operated around the world.
Are damages claimable in addition to demurrage following a delay in discharging?
2021 Rules and Correspondents order form
05/01/2021
For the last four years, hard copies of the UK Club's Rules and Correspondents books have been limited to reduce our impact on the planet.