Law of Tug and Tow and Offshore Contracts
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CHAPTER 2
The implied obligations of tug and tow
The implied obligations of tug and tow
2.1 The law implies certain terms into the contract of towage which define the rights and obligations of tug and tow. These terms will apply to govern the mutual relations of tug and tow under the contract in the absence of express terms having been agreed which are inconsistent with them or which exclude them: see eg The Clan Colquhoun [1936] P 153 per Bucknill J at p. 164: “Until this has been accomplished, the ordinary provision of the common law applies to the rights and duties of each party.” While the implied terms are of little relevance where the towage contract is concluded on one of the commonly used standard forms, where no form or other express terms have been agreed they will define the bounds of the contract between the parties. (For a useful comparative law overview of the general law of towage in other jurisdictions, which it is beyond the scope of this book to consider, see eg Professor William Tetley: “Tug and tow: a comparative study, common law/civil law, US, UK, Canada and France”: 93 Il Diritto Marittimo (1991), 893–923; and in his International Maritime and Admiralty Law (Carswell, 2003), focusing on the general law of towage in the United States and Canada.)Part A. The Obligations of the Tug
The Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982
2.2 The contract for towage is a contract for services. As such it is a contract to which the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982, as amended, applies. This Act provides for certain terms to be implied into all contracts for services unless the service is excluded from the Act by Order made by the Secretary of State (see section 12(4)). No exclusion of towage (or salvage) services has been made. 2.3 The relevant sections of the Act are sections 13 and 14. Section 13 provides:In a contract for the supply of a service where the supplier is acting in the course of a business, there is an implied term that the supplier will carry out the service with reasonable care and skill.