The total weight of materials on board the vessel that varies little from one voyage to another, including the weight of engine spares, spare propeller, spare anchor, spare tailshaft, stores, provisions, crew's effects, lubricating oil and fresh water. (A 20, 000 dwt bulk carrier may have a constant weight of 350 tonnes or more. ) It is routinely determined at the start of draught surveys. It is sometimes called the dead weight constant.

Surveys required by law, i. e. (for a UK ship) by Act of Parliament or regulations made under an Act. They generally lead to the issue or endorsement of a statutory certificate. Class surveys are not a statutory requirement, although class surveyors often carry out statutory surveys under the authority of a flag State.

(1) After every case of general average;

The Special Compensation P&I Clause, a supplementary clause to LOF 2011, 2000 and 1995 agreements that provides for an alternative method of assessing Special Compensation to the method prescribed by Article 14 of the International Convention on Salvage, 1989.

Before departure, if two voyages (the inward voyage and the outward voyage) are to be paid for, or at the conclusion of the inward voyage if it was the ninth voyage on which dues are payable for the accounting year, dues are paid for one voyage.

The authorized officer must first inspect the ship.

By the value of his bunkers remaining on board at the termination of the voyage, plus any freight at risk, if he is the recipient of freight. (Where the time charterer actually owns the cargo there may not be any freight at risk.)

He should follow the average adjuster's advice, which will normally be to obtain Average Bonds and Guarantees on all sound cargo being discharged after the general average act, and to accumulate evidence required for the adjustment. The adjuster will make an estimate of the total value of the loss or damage and advise the shipowner of the rate of contribution required from each party.

Where there is a total loss the measure of indemnity is 100% of the insured value. Where 50% of subject matter insured is destroyed, the measure of indemnity is 50% of the insured value, etc.

At the current rate set by The Merchant Shipping (Light Dues) Regulations 1997 (SI 1997/562), as amended. 

A ship-owner has a common law lien on cargo in his possession for its contribution to a general average.

Cargo is delivered to the receivers, or to their order. The average adjuster then commences collecting documents for the adjustment, which may take several months or even years to complete.

Voyages in the vicinity of a Party as defined by that Party. (Reg. I/1) (This means that States set their own individual "near-coastal" limits. )

An arrangement of piping and hoses used to collect vapour emitted from a tanker's cargo tanks and transport the vapour to a vapour processing unit. (Standards for Vapour Emission Control Systems, MSC/Circ. 585)

(1) To establish an international framework involving cooperation between Contracting Governments, Government agencies, local administrations and the shipping and port industries to detect security threats and take preventive measures against security incidents affecting ships or port facilities used in international trade;