MORRIS NAUTICAL

SPECIAL CONDITIONS

• We require a 50% non-refundable deposit of the Total Charter Fee to confirm the booking. Full payment of the Total Charter Fee is required 30+ days prior to the departure date.
• If the Charterer gives notice to the Owner of cancellation of this Agreement on or at any time before the beginning of the Charter Period, some or all of the Total Charter Fee may be retained by the Owner determined as follow:

If you cancel 31+ days ahead of your departure date, 50% of the Total Charter Fee will be forfeited.

If you cancel within 30 days of your departure date, the full Total Charter Fee will be forfeited.

• If any of the instalments/deposits are due to be paid but have not been paid at the time of notice of cancellation then the Owner shall have a claim against the Charterer for the amount so due.
• If the Owner has to cancel the charter prior to the beginning of the Charter Period (bad weather, breakdown or otherwise), we will advise at the earliest opportunity and provide a full refund (without interest) or re-schedule the charter at a mutually agreed time.

OTHER CONDITIONS

1. Charter rate is based on a ‘per 24hr’ period. Any time (hours) utilising the Vessel outside of the agreed charter times will result in an extra 24hr block charge unless a prior agreement has been made.
2. Operating area is depending on length of charter and time permitting.
3. Crewed use of tenders, water sports, and snorkelling equipment.
4. Night sailing only permitted with prior approval and planning from the Captain.
5. Travel insurance, cancellation for any reason insurance, curtailment insurance and charterer’s liability insurance are highly recommended and should be sourced by the Charterer.

1. AGREEMENT TO CHARTER

The Owner shall charter the Vessel for the Charter Period to the Charterer. The details of the Charter are set out in the Schedule and the Charter is subject to the terms and conditions in clauses 1 to 27.

2. CONFIDENTIALITY

The contents of this Agreement and the identity of the Charterer will remain confidential and will not be disclosed by the Owner to a third party without the prior written consent of the Charterer or except to the extent that disclosure is required by law.

3. INCLUDED ITEMS

Unless otherwise specified in the Special Conditions, the Charter Fee includes the items selected in Item 9 of the Schedule. The Charter Fee includes the use of the Vessel with all its equipment in working order, wages, uniforms and food for the crew, all engine room consumables, all deck and inside cleaning consumables, galley and cabin consumables and the laundry of bed linen and towels.

4. CONDITION OF VESSEL

The Owner shall deliver the Vessel to the Port of Delivery in full working order, clean and good condition and ready for service. The Vessel and its crew will comply with all applicable flag state and class regulations.

5. DELIVERY & RE-DELIVERY

The Charterer agrees to embark and disembark at the ports and at the times stated in Item 5 of the Schedule. The Charterer shall re-deliver the Vessel to the Owner free of any debts incurred for the Charterer’s account during the Charter Period and in as good condition as when delivery was taken, except for the fair wear and tear arising from ordinary use.

6. BREAKDOWN OR DISABLEMENT

If the Vessel is disabled, where possible, the Vessel will be repaired as soon as possible thereafter and in the meantime the conditions of this Agreement shall remain in force but without penalty or additional charge to the Charterer. If the Owner is unable to repair the Vessel after a period of time equivalent to one seventh of the Charter Period, the Charterer shall be entitled to claim repayment without interest pro-rata to the period of delay or, if mutually agreed, shall allow pro-rata extension of the Charter Period. Where the Vessel remains broken down or disabled for a period of over one seventh of the Charter Period, the Charterer shall be entitled to treat this Agreement as having been repudiated by the Owner and seek a refund of any amounts paid to the Owner (including any excess APA funds not already expended for the purposes of the charter).

7. DELAY IN DELIVERY

If, for any reason, the Owner is unable to deliver the Vessel to the Charterer after a period of time of up to the equivalent of one seventh of the Charter Period, the Charterer shall be entitled to claim repayment without interest pro-rata to the period of delay or if it be mutually agreed, shall allow pro-rata extension of the Charter Period. Where the Owner is unable to deliver the Vessel for a period of over one seventh of the Charter Period, the Charterer shall be entitled to treat this Agreement as having been repudiated by the Owner and seek a refund of any amounts paid to the Owner.

8. DELAY IN RE-DELIVERY

If re-delivery of the Vessel is delayed by reason of Force Majeure, re-delivery shall be effected as soon as possible thereafter and in the meantime, the conditions of this Agreement shall remain in force but without penalty or additional charge against the Charterer.

If the Charterer fails to re-deliver the Vessel to the Owner at the Port of Re-delivery due to intentional delay or change of itinerary against the Captain’s advice, then the Charterer shall pay to the Owner at the daily rate plus forty percent (40%) of the daily rate and if delay in re-delivery exceeds twenty-four (24) hours, the Charterer shall be liable to indemnify the Owner for any loss or damage which the Owner shall suffer by reason of deprivation of use of the Vessel or cancellation of, or delay in delivery under, any subsequent charter of the Vessel.

‘Force Majeure’, for the purposes of this Agreement, means any cause directly attributable to acts, events, non-happenings, omissions, accidents or acts of God beyond the reasonable control of the Owner or the Charterer (including, but not limited to, strikes, lock- outs or other labour disputes, civil commotion, riots, blockade, invasion, war, fire, explosion, sabotage, storm, collision, grounding, fog, governmental act or regulation, major mechanical or electrical breakdown beyond the crew’s control and not caused by Owner’s negligence). Crew changes do not constitute force majeure. Force majeure does not excuse the Owner from payment of commissions.

9. PAYMENTS

The Charterer agrees to charter the Vessel and shall pay the Charter Fee and any other agreed charges by the means specified in this Agreement. Any goods and services tax (GST) payable is outlined in Item 11.  For the avoidance of any doubt, any GST payable in relation to this Agreement is to be paid by the Charterer to the Owner. GST refers to Goods and Services Tax under a New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax Act 1999 (Cth) (as amended) (“GST Act”) and the terms used have the meanings as defined in the GST Act.

Crew gratuities are at the discretion of the Charterer.

10. ADVANCED PROVISIONING ALLOWANCE (APA)

The Charterer will pay, at cost, for all additional expenses not included as part of the Charter Fee set out in Clause 3 or prescribed in Item 9 of the Schedule as included in the Charter Fee.

One month prior to the Charter Period, the Owner will give to the Charterer an estimate of the costs not covered by the Charter Fee [Item 9 f the Schedule] and provide this estimate to the Charterer. The Charterer will pay to the Owner this estimate as an Advanced Provisioning Allowance to the Owner. Payment for extraordinary expenses outlined in Item 9 will be deducted from the prepaid amount deposited into the Owner’s account as an APA.

The Captain will keep the Charterer informed of the disbursements from the APA during and at the end of the Charter Period. If the balance becomes insufficient during the charter, the Charterer will pay to the Captain a sufficient sum to maintain an adequate credit balance. The Captain will exercise due diligence in the expenditure of the APA. Any remaining funds in the APA after the end of the Charter Period will be refunded to the Charterer within 14 days.

11. DEFAULTS IN PAYMENT

Should any instalment of the Charter Fee not be paid on the due date, the Charterer will be advised in writing and will have 3 business days to pay the balance due. If the default continues thereafter, the Owner will have the right to immediately terminate this Agreement and retain any funds paid by the Charterer to the Owner.

12. CURRENCY

All amounts due and payable under this Agreement are expressed in Australian dollars and all payments are to be made in Australian dollars. The Charter Fee does not include any financial institution fees and charges incurred by either the Owner or the Charterer which are payable by the Charterer.

13. CRUISING AREA

The Charterer shall restrict the cruising area of the Vessel to the agreed Cruising Area. The Vessel will not undertake night passages during the Charter Period unless agreed by the Captain.

14. USE OF THE VESSEL

The Charterer shall use the Vessel exclusively as a pleasure Vessel for the use of the Charterer and its guests. The Charterer shall ensure that:

1. The Charterer and its guests comply with the laws and regulations of any country the Vessel visits during the Charter Period. The Charterer will indemnify the Owner for any loss or damage suffered by the Owner or any third party as a result of the charterer and its guest’s non-compliance.
2. No pets or animals are brought on board without prior permission.
3. No items which are classed as illegal under Australian legislation shall be used or carried on board.
4. The use by the Charterer and their guests shall not cause any nuisance or offence to any person.
5. Smoking is permitted only with the Captain’s permission.
6. The Charterer and the Charterer’s guests must afford the crew due respect at all times. No crew member shall be subjected to any type of harassment, sexual or otherwise, by the Charterer or the Charterer’s guests at any time during the Charter Period.

The Charterer shall indemnify and release the Owner, its affiliates and employees including crew in relation to any injury, death, loss or damage arising from the Charterer or its guests’ use of the Vessel. If requested by the Owner, a Liability Indemnification Agreement must be signed by the Charterer and each guest and returned to the Owner prior to boarding the Vessel.

15. CHARTERER’S PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITIES

All activities engaged in by the Charterer and the Charterer’s guests are undertaken at the risk of the Charterer and their guests. The Charterer indemnifies the Owner for any loss or damage suffered as a result of participating in activities during the Charter Period. The Charterer and its guests must comply with Australian National and State Legislation relating to the use of watercraft at all times including boat license requirements, speed limits, the use of lifejackets and safety equipment.

The Captain has the authority and absolute discretion to exclude the Charterer and/or any of the Charterer’s guests from participation in any activity during the Charter Period if the activity, if in the sole opinion of the Captain, is unsafe, or the Charterer or guest is behaving in an irresponsible manner, is under the influence of alcohol, or is failing to show due concern for other persons or property when engaging in the activity.

16. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PERSONS

The Charterer shall not, at any time during the Charter Period, exceed the maximum number of persons stated in Items 6 and 7 of the Schedule (excluding crew) to sleep and eat onboard the Vessel. Where children are taken onboard, the Charterer will be fully responsible for their safety, conduct and entertainment and no member of the crew shall be called upon in anyway responsible for their safety, behaviour or entertainment.

Children are included in the maximum number of persons allowable on board.

The Captain shall have the authority and absolute discretion to allow additional persons to board the Vessel whilst at the dock during the Charter Period.

17. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PERSONS

The Captain shall comply with all reasonable requests given to him by the Charterer regarding the management, operations and movement of the Vessel, wind, weather and other conditions permitting. The Captain shall not however, be bound to comply with any requests which, in the Captain’s opinion might result in the Vessel moving to any port or place that is not safe and proper for the Vessel to be in or might result in the Charterer failing to redeliver the Vessel upon expiration of the Charter Period.

Further, without prejudice to any other remedy of the Owner, if in the reasonable opinion of the Captain, the Charterer of any of their guests fail to observe all or any part of the aforementioned provisions and such failure continues after the Captain has given due and specific warning to the Charterer in writing in respect of the same, the Captain shall be entitled to return the Vessel to Port of Delivery and upon such return the Charter Period shall be terminated and the Charterer shall not be entitled to any refunds of the Charter Fee.

18. CREW

The Owner shall provide a properly qualified Captain and a properly qualified crew. All services performed by the Captain and crew will be performed with due care and skill. Rest periods for the crew prescribed by the relevant legislation shall be strictly complied with.

19. INSURANCE

The Owner undertakes to insure the Vessel for the Charter Period against customary risks for its size and value, including for third party liabilities and its use during the Charter Period. Copies of the certificate of insurance and policy wording will be made available to the Charterer upon request for inspection prior to and during the Charter Period.

Except to the extent that any loss or damage is caused by the negligence of the Owner, the Charterer and its guests shall be responsible to the Owner for any loss, damage or injury caused by the Charterer or its guests and shall give prompt notice to the Owner of any event that may rise to a claim. The Owner expressly excludes liability for any loss suffered by the Charterer or its guests for medical or accident expenses incurred or loss of or damage to personal effects occurring during or brought onto the Vessel during the Charter Period.

20. NO ASSIGNMENT

The Charterer may not assign this Agreement or sub-charter the Vessel without the prior written consent of the Owner.

21. COMPLAINTS

The Owner shall not be liable in respect of any matter arising out of or in connection with this Agreement unless the Charterer has given the Owner notice of the Charterer’s complaint, not later than 24 hours after the expiration of the Charter Period or where practical, after the time when the event giving rise to the complaint occurs.

If a complaint is received by the Owner, and the Charterer’s complaint is not resolved by agreement with the Owner within 14 days of the complaint being received, clause 23 (Dispute Resolution) will apply.

22. DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Should any dispute or difference arise between the parties affecting the interpretation, form, validity or performance of this Agreement, then the parties must negotiate in good faith to resolve the matter themselves within 14 days of the dispute arising and without prejudice to any other right or entitlement they may have pursuant to this Agreement.

If the parties are unable to resolve any dispute in accordance with this clause within a period of thirty (30) days, then the dispute shall be referred to arbitration in Brisbane Queensland by a sole arbitrator in accordance with the Arbitration Rules of the Maritime Law Association of Australia and New Zealand.

23. JURISDICTION 

This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of Queensland, Australia and forms the entire agreement between the Owner and the Charterer unless otherwise separately agreed in writing between them.

24. NOTICES

Any notice given or required to be given by either party to this Agreement shall be communicated in any form of writing and shall be deemed to have been properly given if proved to have been dispatched pre-paid and properly addressed by email, ordinary post or bona fide courier service in the case of the Owner, at their address listed in Item 2 of the Schedule, in the case of the Charterer, to its address in Item 3 of the Schedule or, where appropriate, to him/her on board the Vessel.

25. EXECUTION OF AGREEMENT 

This Agreement may be signed in counterparts and can be transmitted to either party by email or other electronic means. The separately signed agreement, and/or copies thereof, shall constitute a binding agreement between the Owner and Charterer.