Abandon jako instytucja morskiego prawa ubezpieczeniowego. Wybrane aspekty prawnoporównawcze

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the issue of abandonment (referred in Poland as “abandon”) in Polish Maritime Code and also in Russian, French and UK legislation. First part opens with overall remarks on marine insurance law as well as abandonment and its functions. Next the author focuses on problems of actual total loss (ATL) and constructive total loss (CTL). Redundant legislative approaches towards defi nitions and purposes of ATL and CTL are presented. This part additionally includes examples of ATL and CTL defi nitions used by major Polish insurance companies in their standard terms of insurance. Further the author sets out a range of situations in which insured party may give notice of abandonment (like e.g. when a ship is lost without any trace). It is followed by a detailed introduction of the notice of abandonment itself (conditions, form, terms, possibility of withdrawal etc.). Acceptance of abandonment by insurer and its legal consequences precede the conclusions of the paper. The main conclusion made by the author is that despite various diff erences in Polish, French, Russian and UK legislation, the essence of abandonment is common to all described legal systems – compensation of a loss that occurs in extraordinary circumstances.