Decision ID: 001069

In October 1999 the 1971 Fund Executive Committee, in the light of further information, reconsidered a claim by a county fire brigade for expenses incurred in providing fire fighting cover during the salvage operations, including costs for labour and the use of vehicles. The Committee agreed that the fire brigade’s operations had on this occasion a dual purpose, ie both to prevent pollution damage and to protect the life of personnel involved in salvage operations. The Committee agreed that the costs of these operations should be apportioned between pollution prevention and other activities and that, since there was no precise basis on which to make such an apportionment, the costs should be apportioned on a 50:50 basis. The Committee also considered that the participation of the fire brigade in the Joint Response Centre had the primary purpose of protection of life and did not have a dual purpose and that this part of the claim should therefore be rejected. The Committee emphasised that the extent to which claims with a dual purpose would be admissible would have to be decided on a case by case basis, taking into account the particular circumstances of each operation.

Date: 30.09.1999
Categories: Clean-up, Preventive measures
Subjects: Claims by emergency services, Specific claims considered by the governing bodies, Claims by emergency services, Specific claims considered by the governing bodies