Pilotage Act 1983

Recovery, etc. of Pilotage Charges

63 Recovery of pilotage charges

(1) The following persons shall be liable to pay pilotage charges for any ship for which the services of a licensed pilot are obtained, namely: —

(a) the owner or master;

(b) as to pilotage inwards, such consignees or agents as have paid or made themselves liable to pay any other charge on account of the ship in the port of her arrival or discharge;

(c) as to pilotage outwards, such consignees or agents as have paid or made themselves liable to pay any other charge on account of the ship in the port of her departure;

and those charges may be recovered in the same manner as fines of like amount under the [1894 c. 60.] Merchant Shipping Act 1894, but that recovery shall not take place until a previous demand has been made in writing.

(2) Any consignee or agent (not being the owner or master of the ship) who is hereby made liable for the payment of pilotage charges in respect of any ship may, out of any moneys received by him on account of that ship or belonging to the owner thereof, retain the amount of all charges paid by him, together with any reasonable expenses he may have incurred by reason of the payment of the charges or his liability to pay the charges.

64 Receiving or offering improper rates of pilotage

A licensed pilot shall not demand or receive, and a master shall not offer or pay to any licensed pilot, pilotage charges of amounts which he knows are greater or less than the amounts authorised by law, and, if a pilot or master acts in contravention of this section, he shall be liable on summary conviction in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding—

(a) in England and Wales and in Scotland, level 3 on the standard scale,

(b) in Northern Ireland, £200.

65 Pilotage rate for leading ships

If any boat or ship, having on board a licensed pilot, leads another ship which has not a licensed pilot on board when that other ship cannot be boarded due to particular circumstances, the same pilotage charges shall be payable in respect of the ship so led as if the pilot had actually been on board and had charge of that ship.