The Inter-Club New York Produce Exchange Agreement (ICA) remains one of the most effective contractual tools for allocating cargo claim liabilities between Owners and Charterers under NYPE and Asbatime charterparties.
A clear and well-structured overview of the ICA is provided in the article “The Inter-Club Agreement”, published by NorthStandard, one of the leading P&I Clubs within the International Group.
The article is part of NorthStandard’s technical insight series and is authored by the Club’s claims and legal specialists.
The ICA, first introduced by the International Group of P&I Clubs in 1970 and subsequently revised, was designed with a pragmatic objective: to avoid lengthy and costly legal disputes by applying a standardized, “rough and ready” apportionment of cargo claims.
In practical terms:
- Claims arising from unseaworthiness or navigational fault are generally allocated to the Owners.
- Claims linked to cargo handling, stowage or discharge typically fall to the Charterers.
- In the absence of clear causation, liability is usually split on a 50/50 basis, unless compelling evidence points otherwise.
The article also explains how the ICA operates in conjunction with charterparty wording and why its consistent incorporation remains critical for effective claims management and risk control in time-charter operations.
📎 Official source and full article:
👉 https://north-standard.com/insights-and-resources/resources/archive/articles/article-the-inter-club-agreement-1665
👉 How are you reflecting the ICA wording in your charterparty templates and internal claims procedures?
Your perspective is welcome.
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