SHIPOWERS' Baltic International Maritime Council
(BIMCO) has launched a "Bunker Non-Lien Clause", aimed at
reducing bunker suppliers' reliance on ship arrests to resolve claims of non
payment by timecharterers, often due to bankruptcy.
If timecharterers are unable to pay a fuel bill, owners
can face arrest of their ships and a loss of hire if bunker suppliers pursue a
claim in this way, reports London's Tanker Operator.
"If a charterer fails to comply with this non-lien
clause, a master has the right to refuse to take delivery of the bunkers - so
it is a provision with some teeth," said BIMCO legal officer Grant Hunter.
If the financial standing of a charter is in doubt,
bunker suppliers may be more reluctant to accept the responsibilities and
liabilities imposed by the clause, which will act as a warning to shipowners,
he said.
In some jurisdictions, bunker suppliers can arrest a
vessel by enforcing a right of lien, or retention, over money they are owed for
bunker, even though shipowners, under a timecharter, are not a party to the
bunker contract.
The clause provides a requirement that timecharterers
notify bunker suppliers prior to purchase that they are buying on their own
account, and not that of the shipowners, thus having no legal recourse to seize
the vessel.
"This clause acts as a useful safety-net for
shipowners because solid timecharterers should have no problem agreeing with it
as they fully expect to pay for the bunkers they order," said Mr Hunter.
Source : HKSG.
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