International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage

General Detail

General Information

  1. Type: Convention
  2. Date of signature:
  3. Place of signature: Brussels, Belgium
  4. Depositary:
  5. Date of entry into force: 19/06/1975

Category

Environment and products

Sub category

Maritime and Law of the Sea

Groups

IMO

What is it about?

This Convention guarantees that adequate compensation is available to persons who suffer oil pollution damage resulting from maritime casualties involving oil-carrying ships. The owner of a ship at the time of an incident, or where the incident consists of a series of occurrences at the time of the first such occurrence, is held liable for any pollution damage caused by oil which has escaped or been discharged from the ship as a result of the incident. This is a no fault liability. This Convention also standardizes the rules regarding procedure and responsibility. The Convention requires ships covered by it to maintain insurance or other financial security in sums equivalent to the owner's total liability for one incident. It applies to all seagoing vessels actually carrying oil in bulk as cargo, but only ships carrying more than 2,000 tons of oil are required to maintain insurance in respect of oil pollution damage. The owner of a ship may limit his liability to a maximum of 18 million US dollars. The provisions of the 1969 Convention do not apply to warships or to ships used in non-commercial government service. The Protocol adopted on 9 November 1976 introduced a new unit of measure to calculate liability using Special Drawing Rights. The Protocol of 27 November 1992 and the amendments of 18 October 2000 revise the compensation offered to victims of oil pollution damage (up to 115 million dollars depending upon the size of the ship).

Why is it relevant?

State parties to the Convention of 1969 allow their population affected by an oil spill to avoid long and complex legal procedures. Funds so paid can also serve to partially compensate losses caused by the pollution and earnings losses in fishing and tourism. This instrument equally requires owners of ships to maintain insurance so as to be covered in case of pollution caused by their ships.

Additional Information

This Convention is supplemented by the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage and by its Protocol of 27 November 1992 that requires increased compensation to victims of oil spill pollutions. In 2003, 43 States, representing 48% of world tonnage, ratified the Convention of 1969.

  • International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage (FUND) (London, 18 December 1971)
  • Protocol to Amend the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage (FUND 2) (London, 27 November 1992)

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Country ratifications
CountryRatification date
Azerbaijan16/07/2004
Benin01/11/1985
Brazil17/12/1976
Cambodia28/11/1994
Chile02/08/1977
Costa Rica08/12/1997
Cote d'Ivoire21/06/1973
Dominican Republic02/04/1975
Ecuador23/12/1976
Egypt03/02/1989
El Salvador02/01/2002
Equatorial Guinea24/04/1996
Gambia01/11/1991
Georgia19/04/1994
Ghana20/04/1978
Guatemala20/10/1982
Guyana10/12/1997
Honduras02/12/1998
Indonesia01/09/1978
Jordan14/10/2003
Kazakhstan07/03/1994
Kuwait02/04/1981
Lebanon09/04/1974
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya28/04/2005
Maldives16/03/1981
Mongolia03/03/2003
Peru24/02/1987
Saint Kitts and Nevis14/09/1994
Sao Tome and Principe29/10/1998
Saudi Arabia15/04/1993
Senegal27/03/1972
Syrian Arab Republic06/02/1975
Turkmenistan21/09/2009
United Arab Emirates15/12/1983
Treaties analysis
YearRatifications
19721
19731
19741
19753
19762
19771
19782
19802
19812
19821
19831
19851
19871
19891
19911
19931
19944
19961
19972
19982
20021
20032
20041
20051
20091
Total37
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