Merchant Shipping Act 1894

554 Agreement as to salvage.

(1) Where services for which salvage is claimed are rendered either by the commander or crew or part of the crew of any of Her Majesty's ships or of any other ship, and the salvor voluntarily agrees to abandon his lien upon the ship, cargo, and property alleged to be salved, then, upon the master entering into a written agreement attested by two witnesses to abide the decision of the High Court in England, or of a Vice-Admiralty Court or Colonial Court of Admiralty, and thereby giving security in that behalf to an amount agreed on by the parties to the agreement, that agreement shall bind the ship, and the cargo, and freight respectively, and the respective owners of the ship, cargo, and freight, and their respective heirs, executors, and administrators, for the salvage which may be adjudged to be payable in respect of the ship, cargo, and freight respectively to the extent of the security given.

(2) Any agreement made under this section may be adjudicated on and enforced in the same manner as a bond executed under the provisions of this Part of this Act relating to salvage by Her Majesty's ships, and on any such agreement being made the salvor and the master shall respectively make the statements required by this Part of this Act to be made in the case of the bond, but their statements need not be made on oath.

(3) The salvor shall transmit the statements made, as soon as practicable to the court in which the agreement is to be adjudicated upon.