SWEDEN Law and Practice Contributed by: Michele Fara, Ninos Aho, Paula Bäckdén and Anders Leissner, Advokatfirman Vinge KB
2. Marine Casualties and Owners’ Liability 2.1 International Conventions: Pollution and Wreck Removal Pollution The 1969 International Convention on Civil Lia - bility for Oil Pollution Damage, as amended in 1992, and the 2001 International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, are incorporated in Chapters 10 and 10a of the Swedish Maritime Code (1994:1009), respec - tively. Registered owners are, with some exceptions, strictly liable for damage or loss caused by oil pollution and bunker oil pollution. The ship- owner is exempt from liability if it can prove that the damage was caused by an act of war or a similar action, if the damage was entirely caused by an act or omission by a third party with intent to cause damage or if the damage was caused by negligence of a public authority in connec - tion with the maintenance of lights or other navigational aids. The law also includes provi - sions on limitation of liability, establishment of a limitation fund, compulsory insurance and direct action against the registered owner. In addition, the Swedish Transport Agency has issued Ordi - nance TSFS 2023:14, which contains detailed rules and recommendations on the discharge of oil and other pollutants from vessels. Wreck Removal Sweden has ratified the 2007 Nairobi Interna - tional Convention on the Removal of Wrecks. Chapter 11a of the Swedish Maritime Code incorporates the convention’s provisions. As a main rule, the ship-owner is required to remove a wreck that poses a danger to navigation or to the environment. Further, lost cargo must always be reported, regardless of whether it poses a
danger to navigation or not. As for larger ships, the ship-owner is also obliged to have liability insurance in place, or to provide other adequate security to cover their liability. The provisions apply to all Swedish territorial waters, including lakes and canals. There is no mechanism for the establishment of a separate wreck fund. 2.2 International Conventions: Collision and Salvage Collision Chapter 8 of the Swedish Maritime Code con - tains provisions on collision liabilities. The provi - sions are based on the 1910 Brussels Collisions Convention and are complemented by the gen - eral rules on ship-owners’ liability in Chapter 7 of the Swedish Maritime Code (1994:1009) as well as general tort law. The main rule regarding collision liability is con - tribution in proportion to the level of causation. A party involved in a collision is liable for losses only to the extent the party has caused the col - lision. Each party answers for half of the loss, unless there are circumstances that give sup - port for any other distribution of liability. There are, however, some exceptions to this rule. If the collision is due to an accident, or if it cannot be determined whether the parties have caused the collision, each party shall be liable for its own loss. Salvage The 1989 International Convention on Salvage has been ratified by Sweden. The provisions are incorporated in Chapter 16 of the Swedish Maritime Code (1994:1009) and are, for the most part, optional. This allows for salvage contracts on different terms, except for certain provision relating to, inter alia, the salvor’s obligation to
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