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Egypt seeks settlement out of court with Japanese company for Suez Canal blockage

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By SAMY MAGDY

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... Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the Japanese owner of the skyscraper-sized Ever Given ...

Shoei Kisen’s ship Ever Given was chartered to Evergreen Marine Corporation, a Taiwanese shipping company that named and operated the vessel.

When you rent a defect-free car from a rental car agency, is the agency responsible when you crash that car?

3 ( +8 / -5 )

So let me get this straight!

Rabie also said Tuesday investigators have analyzed data from the Voyage Data Recorder, also known as a vessel’s black box, but no conclusion had yet been reached on what led the Ever Given to run aground.

He refused to discuss possible causes

But he is demanding the Japanese company pay even though no cause has been determined.

I guess they want the money before the Japanese company request ban independent inquiry and the 2 Egyptian canal pilots who were responsible for piloting the ship through the canal are possibly found responsible, in which case it would be the Egypt that is responsible.

6 ( +9 / -3 )

When you rent a defect-free car from a rental car agency, is the agency responsible when you crash that car?

Incorrect. When you rent a defect-free car and it is involved in an accident, it is the driver that is responsible.

In this case the pilots were Egyptian canal authority pilots, the ships going through the canal must pay the authority to supply these pilots.

So if the ship had no mechanical issues then the responsibility is that of poor piloting and that would be on the Egyptian pilots shoulders and the canal authority's responsibility.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

"Lt. Gen. Osama Rabie told The Associated Press he hoped talks with Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the Japanese owner of the skyscraper-sized Ever Given, will conclude without a lawsuit."

No where in the article does it mention the fact that the ship was operated by a Taiwanese company at the time of the accident. Typical.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

@AntiquesavingToday  

When you rent a defect-free car from a rental car agency, is the agency responsible when you crash that car?

Incorrect. When you rent a defect-free car and it is involved in an accident, it is the driver that is responsible.

Exactly. That is the point that is being made. The question is rhetorical.

In this case the pilots were Egyptian canal authority pilots, the ships going through the canal must pay the authority to supply these pilots.

So if the ship had no mechanical issues then the responsibility is that of poor piloting and that would be on the Egyptian pilots shoulders and the canal authority's responsibility.

Actually, the master/captain of the vessel always has responsibility for the vessel, even during navigation by pilots. However, the master/captain of this vessel was provided by Evergreen, not Shoei.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

No where in the article does it mention the fact that the ship was operated by a Taiwanese company at the time of the accident. Typical.

See the last several articles on this subject.

It gets really messy. Owners of the actual ship are Japanese, the managing company is German, the operating company is Taiwanese, the crew are all Indian.

The pilots at the time of the accident were Egyptian.

But which of these is perceived to have the deeper pockets and more likely to pay than fight?

So they go after the Japanese ship owner, not the operator or management companies.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

I'm thinking there ought to be some sort of insurance angle involved. Or, does insurance only cover sinking or damage to the ship, but not cases where the ship causes damage?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Clearly we will need more info on what (supposedly) happened & go from there as far as culpability is concerned

3 ( +3 / -0 )

First, it was Mauritius. Now, it is Egypt.

Japan does not seem to run out streams of bad luck since the 1990s.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

The Japanese owners can always counter sue the offending parties but it is the lawyers that win in the end.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

The Egyptian pilots are 100% responsible for the navigation and are paid to do it. Nice little earner.

Under Maritime Law, the Master of the Ship is ultimately responsible for the safety and navigation of the ship, even if given potentially bad advice from pilots. It's also Suez Canal Authority Rules. They have to work as a team.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I think they're just trying it on and probably the Japanese will pay up. No way would Americans pay if it there ship.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

The Egyptian pilots are 100% responsible for the navigation and are paid to do it. Nice little earner.

No. That would be true of the Panama Canal but not the Suez. Transiting the Suez, the pilot(s) assist the ship's captain but the captain remains responsible for the safe navigation of the ship through the canal. The same is true wrt the harbor pilots that assist captains entering most ports around the world.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

No where in the article does it mention the fact that the ship was operated by a Taiwanese company at the time of the accident. Typical.

Evergreen of Taiwan chartered the ship but does not own or operate it. The owner is a Japanese firm and the operator, who is hired by the owner to operate their ship, is owned by a Singapore based company. Evergreen is not involved in those decisions.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I'm thinking there ought to be some sort of insurance angle involved. Or, does insurance only cover sinking or damage to the ship, but not cases where the ship causes damage?

Maritime law is different. Yes the ship and its cargo are insured to a degree. The owner of the ship has declared what is called "General Average". What that means is the owners of the freight the ship was carrying and the owner of the ship must each pay a proportion of the costs of the mishap "pro-rata", meaning based on their exposure. In other words all of the merchants who's freight was landed safely after a mishap are required to pay a portion of the costs of the mishap based on how much of the total freight on the ship was theirs. This practice is an ancient law of the sea that remains on the books of most maritime nations.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

After General Average is declared the owners of the freight who are required to pay their share of the cost of the mishap would file claims with their insurance company to cover their loss.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

One last comment. If the SCA and the ship owner are not able to come to agreement out of court, the ship and at least some of the crew will be held in Egypt until the case is settled. That could be years. There are a couple of ships anchored in Great Bitter Lake right now that have been there over a year as disputes are litigated.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@Euro Dude

Why ask compensations to the company, if the ship was piloted and managed by the local authorities?!?!?

The ship was grounded after it lost power and was unable to steer during crosswind according to the testimony of Egyptian pilot.

Hence the shipowner's fault.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The ship was grounded after it lost power 

Curious where you read that? I have been following the incident in a couple of maritime blogs and there has been no mention of an engineering casualty preceding the grounding.

Interesting aside, in the past week or two there have been two big box ships lose power crossing the Pacific from Asia due to contaminated fuel.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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