Loss of life at Sea.

Evening Star, Issue 7411, 5 January 1888, Page 3

Loss of life at Sea.

The final report of the Royal Commission on loss of life at sea has been issued, and tho following is a summary of the formal recommendations submitted by the Commis. sioners:—

1. That the law of marine insurance should be revised with the object of securing that every shipowner insuring his vessel should retain some uninsured interest in it; that for the present and tentatively this interest should be secured by a provision that all claims on the policy, whether for partial or total loss, should be subject to a deduction equal to 3 per cent, of the value which tfu owner chooses to place on his ship. 2. That, with the object of securing this, there shall be implied in every policy a warranty that the insurer will remain his own insurer in all respects for the 3 per cent, of the valuation ; and that a person knowingly making a false claim should forfeit the whole of the policy. 3. That in insurance on freight the net freight only—that is to say, the freight less advances and less the expenses at the time of the loss remaining to be incurred for the purpose of earning it--should alone be recoverable under any form of insurance on freight, and that no valuation of freight in a policy should be binding. 4. That the law of constructive total loss should be amended, and that if tho amount for which the ship could be repaired is less than the valuation in the policy the underwriter should bo liable only for the amount of such estimate for repairs. 5. That the implied warranty of seaworthiness should apply to time policies, and that in both cases the shipowner should bo bound to use all reasonable means to keep his ship in a seaworthy state ; but that the warranty should apply to patent and not to latent defects, of which, from their nature, the owner or his servants or agents can have no knowledge. 0. That questions of seaworthiness in insurance cases should be tried by a Judge with the aid of nautical assessors and without a jury, except in cases where fraud is alleged. 7. That all honor policies should be not only void, but should bo prohibited by law. 8. That where honor policies have been taken out the ordinary legitimate policies should also be void.

9. That deviations to save property, as well as life, should not vitiate any insurance, nor expose the shipowuer to liability under bills of ladiDg. 10. That in cases of loss where injury takes place, the Court should have power to call for full particulars as to all insurances which have been effected on tho vessel, freight, or cargo. 11. That the existing statutory rights of underwriters to call for particulars of insurance on all interests should be extended to every case in which a claim is made on them, whether an action is pending or not.

12. That any provision in a bill of lading or other agreement having for its object or effect to avoid or limit tho liability of a shipowner in respect of goods shipped under it, should have no legal validity if the loss has been occasioned by the Bhip having been Bent to sea in an nnseaworthy condition, unless he proves that he or those to whom he commits the management of his business used all reasonable means to make or keep the vessel seaworthy. 13. That the Employers Liability Act of 1880 should be extended to seamen.

14. That the discretionary power conferred on the Board of Trade to detain vessels should be dispensed with, except in cases where the ship is loaded below the statutory mark. 15. That the load line recommended by the Commission on that subject, and now acted upon by the Board of Trade and Lloyd's, should be made the subject of legal enactment, enforcable by penalty. 16. That Her Majesty's Government should take steps to invite a conference of Maritime States to consider how far it may be possible to agree upon identic rules for the loading of merchant vessels.

17. That the President of the Board of Trade should have statutory power to appoint committees of experts to advise the Board on various shipping questions. 18. That in inquiries by the Wreck Commissioner or by magistrates, the report should in future be confined to a statement of the facts of the case inquired into and the canse of the casualty. 19. That where it appears to the Board of Trade that the result of such inquiry justifies interference with the certificates of any officers of the vessel which is the subject of inquiry, the Board should refer the question to the local Marine Board.

20. That a copy of the report in any inquiry should be registered at the Board of Trade and at Lloyd's, and be open for reference to any shipowner applying to see it.

21. That where a local marine board reports that blame attaches to an officer for misconduct, and not from mere error of judgment, the finding of the Court should bo endorsed on the certificate of the officer. 22, That in all cases in which nautical assessors are engaged, they should be selected with special reference to their

acquaintance With tho particular class of ships and the voyago in question, and should be persons having recent experience in these matters.

23. That whenever a ship comes into port, on board of which an accident involving loss of life has taken place at sea, some inquiry in the nature of an inquest should be forthwith held by an independent judicial officer.

24. That a simple professional examination should be required for the rating of boatsAvains and carpenters. 25. That seamen with the rating of A.B. should be required to have continuous records of their services.

20. That powers similar to those now conferred on the Board of Trade in the case of vessels arriving in our ports on their homeward voyage, for the purpose of preventing crimping, should be conferred on them in the case of outward-bound vessels.

27. That negotiations should be undertaken by Her Majesty's Government with other Powers for the purpose of securing our seamen in foreign ports against the evils of crimping. 28. That ad vance notes should be legalised, but strictly limited in all cases to the adVance of one month's wages. These recommendations arc signed by Mr Shaw-Lefovre, M.P., chairman of the Commission, Mr Chamberlain, M.P., Admiral Sir A. Cooper Key, Mr Heneagc, M.P., Mr Justice Butt, Sir William PearCc, M.P., Sir John Gorst, M.P., Mr H. W. Parker, Mr John Astc, Mr T. C. Baring, M.P., Mr Burt, M.P., Mr Henry Green, Mr James Kennedy, Mr James M'Gregor, Mr T. B. Royden, M.P., Mr L. D. Smith, Mr L. C. Wakefield, Mr W. Walton, and Mr John Warrack. A "minority report" is signed by Messrs Royden, Green, Parker, and Warrack objecting to the tone of the report so far as it deals with tho question of loss of life at sea, while adopting and approving a great part of the summary of recommendations ; and Messrs Wakefield and Smith, whilelikewiseagreeing with the recommendations, offer also some qualifications. Mr G, Ai LaWs, who docs not sign the main report at all, " disagreeing entirely with those portions which assume that restricting insurance will increase the safety of life at sea," presents a separate report setting forth ]iis own views on the subject.