You're barred

Following the conclusion of two voyages, the owners sent two claims (heating and demurrage) to the shipbrokers within the contractual time bar, with instructions for the broker to send them to the charterers. However, the emails were overlooked by the broker and were not sent.

When owners asked for an update on both claims some eight months later, it became apparent to the broker that they had missed the emails and not forwarded the claims to charterers. The broker immediately forwarded the claims, but the charterers rejected them both as they were now time-barred under the terms of the charterparty.

Brokers worked hard to mitigate the claims with the owners and the charterers, but to no avail. They then informed ITIC. There were no defences available to the broker which meant the owner would have had a valid claim against them. Therefore, the broker settled the claims for a total of US$204,000. This was reimbursed by ITIC.

This is a very common mistake. It is helpful to install a diary system and/or to make sure absent colleagues’ desks are covered so emails are not missed when they are away. Some companies have a general “claims” inbox which can be viewed by numerous people so emails are not missed. If numerous people are checking the inbox, please ensure that one of them is actually actioning the messages.