Wreck Law
A Note on Wreck Law
The laws relating to wreck and wrecks are quite complex. Divers may find them confusing and, as
well as increasingly unnecessary risk to underwater archaeological and historic sites, and to
artefacts, divers rights may be jeopardised as a result of misunderstandings which may
arise.
The purpose of this note, is to provide an explanation of the key points contained in the two
principle United Kingdom Acts.
This note supersedes any earlier notes on wreck law issued by the Department
of National Heritage and the Coastguard Agency. As usual, the detail of the laws is complicated and any explanation in plain terms cannot be
definitive. It is hoped that the explanation given below will provide helpful general
guidance.
The two main acts are the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 which deals with
wreck and salvage and which establishes a Receiver of Wreck service for the reporting and
disposal of wreck, and the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, which provides for the
protection of important or dangerous wrecks and wreck sites.
The Role Of The Receiver Of Wreck
The primary aims of the receiver of wreck system are to:
Give the legitimate owner the opportunity of recovering their property,
ensure that law abiding finders receive appropriate reward under the terms of the law this
applies whether the owner is found or not.
"Wreck" covers a wide range of property recovered from the sea or
washed up on the shore. If you have reason to believe you may have found an item of wreck, you
have a legal duty to report it to the Receiver of Wreck, whose address appears below. This
applies to property found in United Kingdom waters or brought within United Kingdom waters. It
should be noted that materials may be dutiable, controlled or prohibited (for example alcoholic
drinks) and if so needs to be declared to HM Customs and Excise.
Finders should assume at the onset that all recovered wreck has an owner. Material at any wreck
site may have more than one owner cargo and personal effects may not have belonged to the owner
of the ship, and the cargo may have been insured by more than one insurance company. There may
well be successors in title to personal property and therefore even an very old material may
still have a current owner.
The Receiver of Wreck has a duty to ensure that finders who report
their finds as required receive appropriate salvage payment either by the owner or by the Crown.
In either case the finder may be given the property instead of receiving payment.
Although some wreck may appear to have little value, this is for the Receiver of Wreck to
decide, and such finds must still be reported. Finds must be reported as soon as possible;
finders who deliberately conceal items of wreck forfeit all rights to salvage and are liable to
prosecution. The finder will in most cases be allowed to hold the recovered material to the
Receivers order whilst investigations into ownership are carried out.
The rights to wreck lie firstly with the owner. Finds are advertised as
appropriate to give the owner the opportunity to come forward and claim back their property.
The Receiver of Wreck Will seek archaeological advice on the identity, age and importance
of historic finds. If no owner is found within one year from the date of the report, the material
becomes unclaimed wreck. The Crown has the right to all unclaimed wreck found within United
Kingdom waters, except to where rights to it have already been given to others by the Crown. The
Crown has no claim on unclaimed wreck found outside United Kingdom limit and the property is
returned to the finder.
Responsibility for the disposal of unclaimed wreck lies with the Receiver
of Wreck. In the majority of cases the finder is offered the material in lieu of a salvage
payment. In certain cases however it may be necessary to sell the material and offer the finder
the net proceeds as a salvage payment. Two examples of this are:
Material considered to be of archaeological importance is offered in the first
instance to a suitable museum, preferably in the area of the find site, thus avoiding the
private acquisition of historic artefacts. The finders wishes are taken into consideration when
deciding on the appropriate museum. The museum is asked to buy the material at the current
valuation and the finder receives the net proceeds of the sale as a salvage payment.
In cases where the Receiver Of Wreck has incurred heavy expenses e.g.
for the removal, storage or conservation of material, it may be necessary for the property to be
sold so that the expenses can be recovered. Again the finder will receive the net proceeds of the
sale as a salvage payment.
The Receiver Of Wreck does not charge a fee, but will expect any costs
incurred (for removal, storage, conservation or valuations) to be paid by the person found to be
entitles to the property.
If the right to, or the amount of, salvage cannot be agreed, either by the owner and finder or
between competing salvors, the Receiver Of Wreck will hold the wreck until the matter is
settled; either through amicable agreement or by court judgement. The Receiver of Wreck
cannot settle disputes relating to salvage payments, neither can the Receiver of Wreck give the
finders the right to salvage any wreck or property in or on the sea.
Further information on the Receiver Of Wreck function and forms for reporting wreck are available from the address given below or from any Coastguard station, or most large diving shops.
Historic Wrecks
Divers who find a possible historic wreck should be careful not to damage it by removing any
artefacts form it. The finders should leave the site intact and report their discovery
(in confidence) to the appropriate authority (see below) and suggest designation under the
Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, if appropriate. An order can be made quickly if necessary,
which will stop unauthorised people from interfering with the site. An immediate report is
therefore important.
Wrecks which ought to be protected on account of their historical,
archaeological or artistic importance can be designated under the 1973 Act which imposes special
restrictions. Designations are decided by The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
(formally Secretary of State for National heritage) or by his counterparts in Scotland, Wales or
Northern Ireland for sites off their shores. In making a designation order the appropriate
Secretary of State is advised by the Advisory Committee on Historic Wreck Sites. The Department
of Culture, Media and Sport acts as the Secretariat for the Committee. The effect of a
designation is to control all activities at the site including those undertaken by the owner and
the salvor of the wreck.
Once a site has been designated under the 1973 Act it may only be visited and
items may only be recovered if a licence for that purpose has been granted by the appropriate
Secretary of State. Anybody (including owners and salvors of the wreck) who interferes with a
designated site without a licence, or any licence-holder who does not obey the terms of the
licence, is guilty of an offence. The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport or his
counterparts will always consider granting the finder a licence to investigate the site. Such
licences will usually only be granted on certain conditions, or with certain restrictions, and
The Secretary of State may vary or revoke such licences at any time after giving not less than
one weeks notice. Every effort will be made to assist finders of historic wreck who wish to carry
out an archaeological investigation of their find.
This assistance will take the form of advice from the Department for Media, Culture and Sports
advisers, marine archaeologists, national or local museums and / or county archaeologists.
Neither the Coastguard Agency nor Department for Media, Culture and Sports
can fund such investigations but many historical wrecks have been investigated by amateur groups
with advice and supervision from the appropriate bodies.
A licence for excavating a designated site, or recovering artefacts from it,
will not normally be granted until the licensee has completed a satisfactory pre-disturbance
survey of the site, under the supervision of suitable archaeologist.
Recoveries from designated sites will not normally be allowed unless conservation facilities are
known to be available and Department for Media, Culture and Sport or its counterpart are content
where the objects will eventually find a home. It would defeat the purpose of designation if
recoveries are simply to be dispersed by sale.
Recoveries from a designated site must still be reported to The Receiver Of Wreck under The Merchant Shipping Act 1995. This is one way of ensuring that the terms of the licence are being observed.
Sites in English waters should be reported to The Department for Media, Culture and Sports at the address below. Historic Scotland is responsible for sites off Scotland. CADW for those off Wales and The Department of Environment (NI) for those off Northern Ireland.
If in doubt The Secretariat of the Advisory Committee On Historic Wreck Sites should be the first contact.
Further information on historic wrecks and the Protection Of Wrecks Act 1973 can be found in the leaflet "Wreck Diving" and the Advisory Committee On Historic Wreck Sites Annual Report, both of which can be obtained from the Department for Media, Culture and Sports at the address below.
Addresses
Secretariat, Advisory Committee On Historic Wreck Sites
Department of Media, Culture and Sport
2 4 Cockspur Street
London
SW1 5DH
Tel 020 7211 6360
Fax 020 7211 6382
Historic Scotland
Longmore House
Salisbury Place
Edinburgh
EH9 1SH
Tel 0131 668 8764
Fax 0131 668 8765
Environment And Heritage Service
Department Of The Environment For Northern Ireland
5 33 Hill Street
Belfast
BT1 2LA
Tel 01232 235 000
Fax 01232 543 111
RCHMS
John Sinclair House
16 Bernard Terrace
Edinburgh
EH8 9NX
Tel 0131 662 1456
Fax 0131 6621477 / 1499
Receiver of Wreck
The Coastguard Agency
1 / 14 Spring Place
105 Commercial Road
Southampton
SO15 1EG
Tel 023 8032 9474
Fax 023 8032 9477
CADW: Welsh Historic Monuments
Executive Agency
Brunel House
2 Fitzalan Road
Cardiff
CF2 1UY
Tel 029 2050 0200
Fax 029 2082 6375
RCHME
Public Services
National Monuments Record Office
Kemble Drive
Swindon
SN2 2GZ
Tel 01793 414 712
Fax 01793 414 770
RCAHMW
National Monuments Record
Crown Building
Plas Crug
Aberystwyth
Ceredigion
SY23 1NJ
Tel 01970 621 233
Fax 01970 627 701