Safe berth warranty in the United States
CITGO v Frescati, the ASBATANKVOY safe-berth clause as a warranty, and the split with English law.
Under United States federal maritime law the ASBATANKVOY safe-berth clause establishes a warranty of safety, not a duty of due diligence. The charterer that designates an unsafe berth is liable whether or not it took care in selecting it.
The United States Supreme Court so held in CITGO Asphalt Refining Co v Frescati Shipping Co Ltd, decided 30 March 2020 by 7 to 2, resolving a circuit split. The facts were a single-hulled tanker striking an abandoned anchor in the Delaware River about 900 feet from the berth in November 2004, spilling about 264,000 gallons of crude.
The full article will cover the circuit split the case resolved, the clause wording the court construed, the contrast with the English abnormal occurrence analysis, and the practical consequences of fixing ASBATANKVOY with a New York rather than a London seat.