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Over the years I'd guess I've been asked more questions regarding salvage than any other general maritime question, so I thought I would discuss the ancient maritime tradition of salvage.
In the olden days mariners needed a little encouragement to help vessels in peril. The encouragement came in the form of allowing the helping vessel to claim an interest in the helped vessel and her cargo. Over the years this has evolved into the rule of thumb that the salvager could claim up to one-third the value of the helped vessel and her cargo. In some cases it can even be more. There are several factors that courts take into consideration, such as the time involved, the money expended, and the human risk pertaining to the assistance rendered. There is a fleet of professional tugs on station around the world to help large freighters who find themselves in peril. One of the great maritime tales is about the tanker Amoco Codiaz, which suffered a rudder failure off the coast of Normandy, France, some years ago. She was drifting toward the coast as one of these salvage tugs arrived on site willing to help. The captain of the tug radioed the captain of the tanker and asked him to agree to the Standard Lloyd's of London Salvage Agreement. The agreement provided that if the tug was able to help the tanker and get her out of peril, the tug and her owners would be entitled to one-third the value of the supertanker and one-third the value of her cargo of oil—meaning millions of dollars. The Amoco captain, not wishing to make that kind of decision, radioed back to his corporate headquarters for directions. They suggested he agree to pay a very large hourly fee for the tug but not to agree to the salvage agreement. While this discussion was going on, the vessel drifted onto the rocks, and the first of the modern-day major oil spills took place. A costly decision indeed! Some people might say that's a lot of money to get for helping a ship in trouble. Well, yes, it is, and so is the cost of stationing those tugs around the world. Amoco would have been better off paying the tug as opposed to the cost of the subsequent cleanup. And this brings up the modern towboats that help those of us who get stuck on those constantly moving sandbars (none of us would ever knowingly run into a sandbar, and whenever possible never admit to it). These are the same nice guys who give you your radio checks. They operate under the same salvage rules, as salvage applies to any size vessel. They are on the air fighting for your business if you are stuck on a sandbar, out of gas, or have a dead battery. Remember the Coast Guard only helps those threatened with loss of life or grave bodily injury. All the rest are forced to call for the services of the private towing companies. They charge a small fee if you have a marine insurance policy for such purposes. If not, their charges are usually based on their time from leaving their dock until the time they return (dock to dock) at, say, $125 per hour. They are entitled to place a lien against your vessel if you are unwilling to pay. I would strongly suggest buying the towing insurance, or you could be paying several thousand dollars for a pull off a sandbar. Another frequently asked question is ³Can I keep a vessel if I find one?² Maybe, if you go through the proper procedures of claiming the vessel. If you find a vessel, you are required to try to find her owner and, as the law says, ³exercise due diligence² in doing so. This requires that you call the Coast Guard and the state agency that is responsible for licensing vessels (it may or may not have a state registration number) in the location she was found. You should also run an ad in the local paper describing the vessel. If you have the hull numbers, you can try calling the manufacturer of the vessel. After all that effort, if you still have not found her owner, you are required, in some states, to file a lawsuit to declare that you are the (new) owner before you can apply for title to your prize. |
If it is a small vessel which is drifting slowly by your dock, you should first decide if you want the vessel, and if so, pull her up on your beach and start using her. If someone shows up and says it is theirs, let them have her. If no one comes to claim her, you are the proud new owner. Either way, think of all the trouble you saved (due diligence in trying to find the owner).
Large vessels are a problem. Once you take possession of one of those, you may have to keep it even if it is not yours and you decide you don't want it! That brings back to me the memory of this old barge that did not pay her dockage. Somehow she got moved and was tied to a piling across the river from her old berth. One day she got untied (it was suspected that some kids playing might have untied her), and started down river on her own. The old girl got through four drawbridges all by herself. The Coast Guard was called by the bridge tenders and in turn called one of the local shipyards and asked for assistance in bringing her under control. They sent one of their yard tugs and towed her to their yard. That's when all the trouble started. The shipyard did not want to keep the old barge, which was on its last legs, and the Coast Guard did not want her either. The owners had abandoned her and had no money. The shipyard threatened to turn her loose again only to find out that the Coast Guard would hold them responsible for any damage she might cause. Once you tie on to that abandoned vessel, you are responsible for it. In the case of the barge, the Coast Guard finally paid to have her broken up by the shipyard. In another example, I once had a client who noticed a 23-foot boat adrift. He pulled over to the side of the causeway and walked out into the water and pulled the vessel in. After he went through the due diligence, the boat was his, and a nice little vessel she was, too. I also recall a shrimper who came upon a new $85,000 overturned speedboat some 12 miles offshore. The Coast Guard had taken off her passengers the day before because of an emergency. The shrimper towed the vessel in and successfully placed a claim for services with her insurance company to the tune of $35,000. The insurance company gave him the vessel for his fee. They also paid off the vessel's owner. It turned out that the vessel had a float in her fuel tank that read 1/2 full when it was empty. If something happens to your prize while you are trying to salvage her, and she sinks and becomes a hazard to navigation, guess whom the Coast Guard and the Corps of Engineers will look to for removal? If you fail to remove the vessel, they can charge you with the cost. A sadder case—and a lesson for all—is one of an elderly gentleman who found that his powerboat had come off one of the davits behind his house. He was trying to get her re-hooked and back in place when one of the towboat privateers stopped to help. They did get her re-hooked, and they sent the elderly gentleman a bill for their services, $4,500, saying his insurance company should pay. The insurance company denied the claim, and he was forced to pay. Then there is the question of helping a fellow boater in trouble—and the answer to that depends on your character. You have the right to be a good Samaritan or a privateer. Capt. J. Michael Shea is a maritime attorney in Tampa and holds a masters and harbor pilots license. He has co-authored law books in the maritime field and writes articles on maritime law. |
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