Mercantile Marine Act, 1955

Delivery up of certificate of ship lost or ceasing to be owned by qualified persons.

40.—(1) In the event of a registered ship being either actually or constructively lost, taken by the enemy, burnt or broken up, or ceasing by reason of a transfer to persons who are not qualified persons or otherwise, to be a registered ship, every owner of the ship or of any share in the ship shall, immediately on obtaining knowledge of the event, if no notice thereof has already been given to the registrar, give notice thereof to the registrar at her port of registry, and that registrar shall make an entry thereof in the register book, and provided the Minister has given his approval where such approval is necessary under regulations made under section 76 of this Act, the registry of the ship in that book shall be considered as closed except so far as relates to any unsatisfied mortgages or existing certificates of mortgage entered therein.

(2) In any such case, except where the ship's certificate of registry is lost or destroyed, the master of the ship shall, if the event occurs in port, immediately, but if it occurs elsewhere, then within ten days after his arrival in port, deliver the certificate to the registrar, or, if there is none, to the diplomatic or consular officer there, and the registrar, if he is not himself the registrar of her port of registry, or the diplomatic or consular officer, shall forthwith forward the certificate delivered to him to the registrar of her port of registry.

(3) If any such owner or master fails, without reasonable cause, to comply with this section, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction thereof, to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.