Bareboat charter and contract of affreightment

This chapter looks at two forms of chartering, not commonly found in the market as voyage and time charters do, but nevertheless very challenging alternatives; the bareboat charter and the contract of affreightment (CoA). Bareboat – a form of period charter – is an option of high risk to the shipowner, as the vessel is put at the disposal of the charterer who takes over the possession and the complete control of it. The crucial role of the vessel under a bareboat is spotted and the allocation of duties, obligations, rights and costs is examined in respect with critical topics, e.g. vessel’s commercial operation, navigation, delivery and redelivery, manning, insurances, maintenance and repair, cargo handling, cargo liability, hire payment, lien and indemnity, claims against third parties, etc. A CoA, on the other hand, is the most noteworthy of hybrid charters (combining elements of voyage and time charter), where the cargo and the time – but not a specific vessel – play the foremost role. Analysis follows a similar pattern, focusing on the structure and benefits of such a contract, as well as on critical subjects, peculiarities and charterparty clauses about the period, the cargo, the vessels, the shipments, the nominations, the charterparty construction and the role of shipbrokers.