REMIT AND SCOPE OF THE RECEIVER OF WRECK
in
relation to wreck finds
Receiver
of Wreck's remit
The Receiver of Wreck's remit
is set
down in the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, Part IX, Chapters 1-2. It covers wreck from UK territorial waters,
and wreck landed in the UK from outside UK territorial waters.
The Receiver's remit extends to tidal waters in the UK, so does not cover lakes for instance.
Duty
& Rights of Receiver of Wreck
To give legal
owners
the opportunity of recovering their property, and to ensure that a salvage award is paid to the legal
salvor, when due. The Receiver of Wreck will recover any costs incurred from the public purse.
Duty
& Rights of Salvor
On recovering wreck material,
the finder should declare it promptly (where possible within 28 days) to the Receiver of Wreck giving
a description of the wreck and will usually be asked to hold it to the Receiver's order. A salvor acting
properly under the law is entitled to a salvage award.
Duty
& Rights of Owner
The owner
of any wreck must prove
ownership to the satisfaction of the Receiver within one year. On payment of expenses and an appropriate
salvage award, the owner is entitled to have his or her property returned.
Unclaimed
Wreck
Wreck from UK waters which remains unclaimed
at the end of one year, becomes the property of the Crown (or grantee of the Crown such as the Duchy
of Cornwall). Any person entitled to unclaimed wreck must provide evidence of entitlement to the satisfaction
of the Receiver. If wreck from UK territorial waters is unclaimed at the end of one year, the Receiver
will dispose of the find on behalf of the Crown. If wreck from outside UK territorial waters is unclaimed
at the end of one year, the Crown makes no claim, and the material is returned to the finder.
Salvage
award
The value of the salvage award is based
on the
value of the find (pre-conservation), but cannot exceed the value of the find. Up to 3 evaluations may
be gathered from independent valuers. The cost of any valuations must be met from the salvage award.
The value of the award is calculated using criteria set out in the International Convention on Salvage
1989.
Education
The
Receiver of Wreck has since 1993 concentrated on a strong educational drive. This was followed by the
Wreck Amnesty in 2001 which allowed finders to report previously undeclared finds without fear of prosecution.
In conjunction with a continued and more focused education programme, the Receiver of Wreck intends
to undertake monitoring of activities and when illegal activity is suspected, will not hesitate to take
action to enforce the law.
Historic Wreck
Material
The Receiver of Wreck recognises the
importance
of archaeologically and historically significant material and is committed to trying to keep collections
together and on display in a public museum, preferably in a location close to the find site.
MCA advocates and promotes safe, legal and responsible diving practices
This document is intended as a summary and should not be considered definitive