Voyage Charters
Page 933
Chapter 38
Commencement and Calculation of Laytime
| 6. NOTICE OF READINESS. Upon arrival at customary anchorage at each port of loading or discharge, the Master or his agent shall give the Charterer or his agent notice by letter, telegraph, wireless or telephone that the Vessel is ready to load or discharge cargo, berth or no berth, and laytime, as hereinafter provided, shall commence upon the expiration of six (6) hours after receipt of such notice, or upon the Vessel’s arrival in berth (i.e., finished mooring when at a sealoading or discharging terminal and all fast when loading or discharging alongside a wharf), whichever first occurs. However, where delay is caused to Vessel getting into berth after giving notice of readiness for any reason over which Charterer has no control, such delay shall not count as used laytime. |
| 7. HOURS FOR LOADING AND DISCHARGING. The number of running hours specified as laytime in Part I shall be permitted the Charterer as laytime for loading and discharging cargo; but any delay due to the Vessel’s condition or breakdown or inability of the Vessel’s facilities to load or discharge cargo within the time allowed shall not count as used laytime. If regulations of the Owner or port authorities prohibit loading or discharging of the cargo at night, time so lost shall not count as used laytime; if the Charterer, shipper or consignee prohibits loading or discharging at night, time so lost shall count as used laytime. Time consumed by the vessel in moving from loading or discharge port anchorage to her loading or discharge berth, discharging ballast water or slops, will not count as used laytime. |
Time counting before laytime
38.1 As indicated above, the first sentence of clause 5 must be read in conjunction with clause 6. Under clause 5, laytime shall not commence before the date stipulated in Part I, except with the charterer’s sanction. What amounts to the relevant “sanction”? In Pteroti v. National Coal Board,1 the charter provided that laytime at the discharge port should count 24 hours after tender of notice of readiness, and Diplock J. held that the mere fact that the vessel began to discharge did not alter the effect of that term and he held that the charterer’s acceptance of discharge did not amount to an agreement to start laytime early. In The Front Commander,2 in which there was a specific additional clause that provided that laytime could start early if the charterer agreed, the request by the charterer that the vessel should tender notice of readiness and berth was held to be such a sanction, and advanced the start of laytime. No further specific agreement that laytime should start early was necessary. It would seem, therefore, that if a charterer merely performs his part of the loading or discharging operations, but no more, then