Where Candidates Lose Marks
The most common failure is confusing salvage with towage, and then giving a vague answer about 'rescue at sea'. Examiners want to hear five precise elements that make salvage legally distinct — if a candidate cannot articulate what makes a valid salvage claim, they will not pass this topic.
A secondary weakness is failing to connect LOF (Lloyd's Open Form) to the salvor's practical reality onboard, or not knowing that the owner/master cannot simply refuse a salvor.
What Salvage Actually Is
Salvage is a voluntary service rendered to a vessel or property in danger at sea, which is successful in whole or in part, without any pre-existing duty to assist. The salvor earns a reward proportional to the outcome — no cure, no pay is the fundamental principle.
Five elements the examiner expects you to name:
- Voluntariness — the salvor has no pre-existing contractual or legal duty to assist
- Danger — the vessel or property must be in genuine peril (not merely inconvenienced)
- Success — some property must be saved; a failed attempt earns nothing under the basic rule
- Maritime property — ships, cargo, freight, and bunkers qualify; lives alone do not generate a salvage reward (though life salvors share in the award for property saved)
- Without the owner's consent being a bar — a master can accept salvage assistance; the vessel's peril overrides owner reluctance
Lloyd's Open Form (LOF)
LOF is the standard salvage contract used internationally. Its key features:
- 'No cure, no pay' basis — reward only on success
- Arbitration in London under Lloyd's Salvage Arbitration Branch
- Special Compensation (SCOPIC clause) allows a salvor to claim costs plus a mark-up when preventing or minimising environmental damage, even where no property is saved — this is the major exception to 'no cure, no pay'
The Master's Role
The master has authority to enter into a salvage agreement on behalf of owners and cargo interests. A master should not unreasonably refuse assistance when the vessel is in genuine danger. Accepting LOF is common practice; the master signs on behalf of all interests.
MSN 1858 and the 1989 International Salvage Convention
The oral examination syllabus underpinned by MSN 1858 expects candidates to know the 1989 International Salvage Convention, which codified the key principles above, including special compensation for environmental protection — a significant departure from pure 'no cure, no pay'. The Convention is the instrument that introduced these requirements into international law; MSN 1858 is the UK certification and manning notice that defines the certificate requirements under which this knowledge is assessed.