Berlin. The federal government wants to create better compensation rules in the event of ship accidents. The cabinet approved bills on Wednesday that would allow ratification of the international agreement on liability and compensation in the event of an accident. “We are thus creating the conditions to at least economically mitigate damage from accidents,” said the Federal Government’s Maritime Coordinator, Norbert Brackmann (CDU), on Wednesday. The basis is an international agreement from 1996 on liability and compensation for damage during the transport of dangerous substances by sea in the version of a protocol from 2010. The so-called HNS Convention provides for a fund and an insurance obligation for ships that transport dangerous goods.
In future, environmental damage will also be covered
“In the case of accidents in German waters, we also relieve the federal, state and local authorities,” said Brackmann. In the future, there will also be a fund for environmental damage. If the environment is polluted in an accident off the German Baltic or North Sea coast and this has negative effects on tourism, this currently has to be borne by the federal, state and local authorities. In future, injured parties should not only be able to assert claims against the shipowner and his insurance, but also against the HNS fund. (dpa)
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