A wreck that results from a ship sinking, running aground or being abandoned can affect navigational safety, the environment and port operations. The expenditure on removing a wreck sometimes exceeds the ship’s economic value. Who is obliged to act, from whom the cost can be claimed and what part of it insurance will cover are separate legal questions. These questions should be assessed together before a removal contract is signed and before the wreck is transferred.
In incidents in Türkiye, the core areas of examination are the Ports Law No. 618, the Turkish Commercial Code, the relevant administrative regulations and the applicable insurance contract. For a foreign shipowner, a P&I club or a foreign law firm, the first need is to determine the authority of the local administration and the extent to which the international convention system comes into play.
Which situations give rise to an obligation to remove a wreck?
Wreck removal is not merely a technical job covering the lifting of a fully sunken ship from the sea. In concrete circumstances it may be necessary to mark or light the ship, remove hazardous cargo, move it to a safe place or dispose of it by breaking it up. Which measure is mandatory is determined by the risk that has arisen and the decision of the competent authority.
Article 7 of the Ports Law provides rules for grounded, semi-submerged, sunken, abandoned or idle ships and their property that pose certain dangers within the harbor master’s office’s area of administrative responsibility. Besides obstruction to the safety of navigation and voyage, the risk to life, property and the environment is also important. It should not be concluded that every unused ship will be removed under the same procedure; the statutory conditions and a concrete danger must be shown. [1]
That a ship is deemed a total loss under hull insurance, who owns it, and who bears the public-law obligation to remove it are not the same issue. Payment of insurance compensation does not by itself show that all the obligations of the shipowner or of other interested parties have ended. The abandonment, subrogation and ownership provisions in the policy are examined separately.
What measures can the harbor master’s office take in Türkiye?
Under Article 7 of the Ports Law, as amended in 2017, the shipowner or the master may be required to remove or lift the ship and its property within a period set by the harbor master. The initial period cannot exceed 45 days. On an application made because of a technical or meteorological necessity, an extension not exceeding 45 days may come into question under the conditions laid down in the law. These periods should not be seen as a total waiting entitlement granted automatically. [1]
For foreign-flagged ships, notification is specifically regulated with regard to the relevant authorities of the registry state, the shipowner and the master. Where the address is unknown, the notice-by-announcement procedure becomes important. For ships under attachment, notification is also made to the relevant enforcement office. For this reason, it cannot be assumed that all the conditions of notification and announcement have been met merely because an e-mail reached the agent.
Where the persons concerned cannot be reached under the conditions in the law, or avoid removal, the harbor master is authorized to remove or have the ship removed, to have it destroyed or to carry out sale proceedings. The covering of expenses from the sale proceeds, the position of attached claims and the payment of any surplus to the rightholder are separately regulated. The provision that applications concerning the sale do not stop the sale automatically should be taken particularly into account in the plan of legal remedies.
If there is a serious danger, is the period awaited?
The law also grants an urgent-measure power for situations that pose a serious danger to navigation, life, property or the environment. In these circumstances, the harbor master may take the necessary measures, including moving the ship to a safe place, without being bound by the periods in the first paragraph, even if there is a court decision or injunction concerning the ship. The provision places the cost of these measures on the shipowner. [1]
For this reason, a precautionary attachment order or a private-law dispute is not an automatic justification for leaving a ship in a dangerous position. On the other hand, the basis, scope, technical reasoning and cost calculation of the administration’s measure can be reviewed. The routes to be followed for the administrative act, the contractor’s contract and the insurance claim should not be mixed up in the same file.
How do wreck removal, salvage and towage differ?
Salvage is an activity directed at rescuing a ship or other property in danger; the provisions of the Turkish Commercial Code beginning with Article 1298 are important. Towage, on the other hand, may be a towing or assistance service undertaken in advance, depending on its conditions. In wreck removal, the priority is often the elimination of an obstruction or an environmental danger. [2]
Writing “salvage” in a contract does not by itself turn every activity into salvage. The danger at the moment the work began, the purpose of the activity, the service provider’s pre-existing obligation, the work performed and the contract terms are examined. In the same incident, salvage may take place first, then towing to a safe place, and finally wreck removal. Which stage the charges belong to should be recorded separately.
| Activity | Basic assessment | Principal documents |
|---|---|---|
| Salvage | The value in danger and the salvage activity | Salvage contract, operation records |
| Ordinary towage | The towing or maneuvering service undertaken | Towage terms, duty and time records |
| Wreck removal | Elimination of the danger or obstruction | Administrative decision, method plan, removal contract |
| Purchase of scrap or wreck | Transfer of ownership and the work undertaken by the buyer | Tender specification, sale and delivery documents |
This classification prevents different cost items from being tied to the same policy or the same liability limit. Damage to the removal contractor’s own equipment or accidents to its employees are also risks that must be regulated separately; they are not covered automatically from the shipowner’s P&I cover.
Does the Nairobi Convention apply directly in Türkiye?
The Nairobi 2007 Wreck Removal Convention establishes an international system for the location, marking and removal of hazardous wrecks. In the IMO’s 2026 record of parties, Türkiye does not appear as a party to this convention. For this reason, not every wreck file in Türkiye can be run as though the Nairobi provisions applied directly. For Türkiye, national legislation and other applicable rules must be examined. [3, 4]
However, the convention may matter in a foreign country for a business with a Turkish connection. The insurance and certificate obligations of a ship calling at the port of a state party may come into play. The ship’s flag, port of call, the location of the casualty and whether the state concerned has extended the convention’s scope to its territorial sea are checked together.
The compulsory financial security rule in the Nairobi system matters for ships of 300 gross tons and above. The convention’s general geographical area and the states’ choices on extension to their territorial seas are examined separately. The certificate threshold should not be used as if it were a single, fixed ship-size threshold for all the substantive obligations in the convention. [3]
In an incident where the convention is applicable, special facilities such as a direct claim against the insurer may exist. In a casualty occurring in Türkiye, however, the existence of a certificate issued abroad does not by itself establish the same right of action or the same jurisdiction. The type of certificate, the undertaking it rests on and the scope of the incident are examined.
Can removal costs be limited?
The limitation of liability for maritime claims is not a general upper ceiling applied in the same way to all claims. Article 1331 of the Turkish Commercial Code excludes limitation for claims of the wreck and cargo removal type specified in sub-paragraphs 2/1-d and 2/1-e of the 1976 LLMC Convention, and for the claims listed in its Article 3. Türkiye’s relevant international reservation is also taken into account on this point. [2, 4]
It is therefore wrong to calculate an LLMC figure for a wreck removal invoice solely from the ship’s tonnage and say that the entire debt will remain at that amount. First, the true nature of the claim and the law under which limitation is asserted must be determined. Port damage, pollution damage and wreck removal costs arising from the same casualty may be subject to different assessments.
The existence of an insurance limit is also different from the limitation of legal liability. The insurer’s contractual payment ceiling does not by itself reduce the shipowner’s debt to the injured party. The possibility that a portion outside cover or above the limit will remain should be assessed separately.
What conditions are checked in P&I cover?
In a P&I review, the first documents are the club’s certificate of entry on the date of the incident, the applicable rules, special terms and, where relevant, compulsory insurance certificates. Which interest of the ship is insured, whether the incident occurred within the cover period and on what legal basis the removal obligation rests are clarified.
As an example, Gard’s Rule 40 deals, under certain conditions, with removal, marking and similar costs that are legally required or can be legally demanded of the member, and with liability for obstruction arising from a casualty. The transfer of the interest in the wreck and the taking into account of the value salvaged are also important in the rules. This framework does not mean that another club or another policy would produce the same result. [5]
Assessing the removal method and the choice of contractor with the insurer in good time reduces cover and cost disputes that may arise later. It should not be concluded that urgent safety measures must be postponed. Where there is urgency, the reason for the decision taken, the alternatives considered and the notifications made should be recorded.
A prior-approval condition may exist for liabilities assumed only by contract that go beyond the statutory obligation. Before signing, the contractor’s unlimited indemnity clause, broad environmental warranty or a provision that shifts unforeseen ground risk to the shipowner should be compared with the cover. The club’s appointment of an expert or conduct of an investigation should also not be construed as an unconditional acceptance of payment.
How are the contractor’s contract and the cost file prepared?
The technical survey should be carried out on the wreck’s position, hull integrity, water depth, current, seabed, remaining fuel and cargo. The final objective should be clear in the contract: is the aim only to open the navigation channel, to remove the wreck entirely, to achieve a certain depth, or to eliminate the environmental risk? If the acceptance criterion is left unclear, whether the work has been completed becomes disputed.
Pricing can be set on a lump-sum or a time-and-materials basis. The allocation of risk should be shown for weather standby, additional cranes, diving days, fuel removal, waste disposal, permits and damage to third parties. Who will issue a change order and above what amount additional approval will be required should be written down.
The daily operation report should record working and standby hours, sea state, equipment used, personnel, quantity completed and the reason for any stoppage together. It is useful to compare independent survey records with the contractor’s reports. When an operation is prolonged, claiming payment only on the basis of total calendar time may leave unanswered the question of what work was done on which day.
Scrap income obtained from the wreck, cargo salvaged, payments received from another source and cost savings should be shown transparently. Environmental permits and waste delivery records should also be tied to the financial file. It should be remembered that acceptance by the competent authority at the end of the job and contractual acceptance may require different documents.
Can the person who buys the wreck claim under the former insurance?
In the judgment of the Istanbul 17th Commercial Court of First Instance dated 30 June 2022, E. 2021/353, K. 2022/442, the additional expense claims put forward by a person who had bought the wreck of a grounded ship through a tender were examined. The court dismissed the case after assessing the nature of the sale, the transfer of ownership, the activity carried out and the bases of the cost allegations. [6]
This judgment is a first-instance decision; it is not presented here as a final judgment or as precedent binding in all wreck disputes. The practical conclusion that can be drawn is that buying the wreck and acquiring the former shipowner’s insurance rights are not the same transaction. The tender specification, the continuation of the insurance relationship, any assignment of receivables and provisions for the benefit of third parties should be examined separately.
The characterization of the activity in the judgment also depends on the facts of that file. It cannot be inferred from it that no wreck-raising job can ever be salvage. In a new file, the real work and obligations, not the name of the contract, should be the basis.
Example file: a foreign ship that has run aground
Hypothetically, let us assume that a foreign-flagged cargo ship that has run aground in Türkiye narrows the harbor entrance and poses a risk of fuel leakage. At the first stage, the harbor master’s hazard assessment, the notifications and their time limits are examined. Then the safety measures, fuel removal and the removal job are budgeted separately. Contact is made with the insurer; the effect of the method and the contract on cover is assessed. If there is an offer to sell the ship as scrap, the effect of the transfer of ownership on insurance and cost obligations is clarified before that transaction.
Conclusion
Sound file management in the removal of a ship wreck requires the administrative decision, the operation plan, the contract, the insurance and the cost record to be assessed together. One should not proceed on the assumptions that the Nairobi Convention will apply directly in Türkiye or that the removal cost will in every case be limited by tonnage. The sale of the wreck and the contractor’s contract in particular are fundamental transactions that affect later claims and defenses.
Related articles: Marine pollution and compensation; Injury and death of crew; Damage to ports, piers and terminals; Maritime casualty claims under P&I insurance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the shipowner escape all costs by abandoning the wreck?
A declaration of abandonment does not by itself end all public-law and private-law obligations. The applicable law, the administrative decision, the ownership position and the insurance conditions are examined together.
Must the harbor master’s office wait 45 days in every incident?
No. The period in the ordinary removal process differs from the urgent-measure power in a case of serious danger. Once the statutory conditions are met, urgent measures may be taken without being bound by the periods in the first paragraph.
Is Türkiye a party to the Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention?
In the IMO 2026 record of parties accessed at the date of review, Türkiye is not among the parties. Different obligations may arise in an incident in a foreign country or on a call at the port of a state party.
Does P&I pay the whole wreck removal bill?
That result cannot be accepted in advance. The legal obligation, the cover period, reasonable costs, special terms, approval provisions and, where applicable, the set-off of value are examined.
Can the LLMC limit apply to wreck removal costs?
Wreck and cargo removal claims, which TTK Article 1331 excludes, should be taken into account in particular under Turkish law. A calculation based solely on tonnage cannot be made without determining the nature of the claim.
Does the scrap buyer benefit from the former shipowner’s insurance?
Purchase does not mean an automatic transfer of insurance rights. The sale documents, the policy, the insurer’s acceptance and any valid assignment of receivables are assessed separately.
Sources
1 — Ports Law No. 618, Article 7; text as amended by Article 5 of Law No. 7061; UYAP legislation record.
2 — Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102, in particular Article 1298 et seq. and Articles 1328–1331.
3 — IMO, Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks.
4 — IMO, Status of IMO Treaties 2026, Vol. II, Nairobi list of parties and Türkiye’s reservation to LLMC 1996.
5 — Gard, Rule 40: Liability for obstruction and wreck removal. An example of specific club terms.
6 — Istanbul 17th Commercial Court of First Instance, 30.06.2022, E. 2021/353, K. 2022/442; judgment record. The full text was reviewed; finality was not verified.
Date of source access and legislation review: 14 October 2026. Before publication, amendments and applicability to the specific case should be checked.