Implied Warranty of Seaworthiness Under United States Maritime Law: The Differences and Similarities to South African Marine Insurance Law

Abstract

"Seaworthiness" in a vessel (ship) is the ability or inability of a vessel to stand the perils of the sea for the purpose of conveying the cargo (goods), that the vessel was hired to do. This relates to the vessel's fitness in order to perform this function across the sea or waterways. The term also means the vessel's being equipped for the purpose of conveying a particular kind of cargo. For example, a ship intended for the purpose of conveying cars must be equipped with the facilities of securing the vehicles into place onto the ship in such a way that the cars cannot move about with the movement of the ship in the sea during storm, leading the cars to become damaged.This work examines the extent of the warranty on the ship and cargo as seen by maritime law in the United States courts, as compared to the legal position under South African Marine Insurance Law. This work explores the differences and similarities of the legal positions under the two Maritime jurisdictions, and offers suggestions.