Merchant Shipping Act 1894

Reimbursement of Relief to Seamen's Families.

182 Relief to seamen's families to be chargeable on a certain proportion of their wages.

(1) Whenever, during the absence of any seaman on a voyage, his wife, or any of his children or step-children, becomes chargeable to any union or parish in the United Kingdom, that union or parish shall be entitled to be reimbursed, out of the wages of the seaman earned during the voyage, any sums properly expended during his absence in the maintenance of those members of his family or any of them, so that the sums do not exceed the following proportions of his wages ; (that is to say,)

(a) If only one of those members is chargeable, one half of the wages :

(b) If two or more of those members are chargeable, two thirds of the wages.

(2) If during the absence of the seaman any sums have been paid by the owner of his ship to or on behalf of any such member as aforesaid, under an allotment note made by the seaman in favour of the member, any claim for reimbursement as aforesaid shall be limited to the excess (if any) of the proportion of the wages hereinbefore mentioned over the sums so paid.

183 Notice to owner, and enforcement of charge.

(1) For the purpose of obtaining such reimbursement as aforesaid, the board of guardians in a poor law union in England or Ireland, and the inspector of the poor in any parish in Scotland, may give to the owner of the ship in which the seaman is serving a notice in writing stating the proportion of the seaman's wages upon which it is intended to make a claim, and requiring the owner to retain such proportion in his hands for a period to be therein mentioned, not exceeding twenty-one days from the time of the seaman's return to his port of discharge, and also requiring the owner immediately on the seaman's return to give notice in writing thereof to the board or inspector.

(2) The owner, after receiving any such notice, shall retain the said proportion of wages, and give notice of the seaman's return accordingly, and shall likewise give to the seaman notice of the intended claim.

(3) The board or inspector may, upon the seaman's return, apply to a court of summary jurisdiction having jurisdiction in the union or parish for an order for reimbursement; and that court may make a summary order for the reimbursement to the whole extent claimed, or to such lesser amount as the court, under the circumstances, think fit; and the owner shall pay to the board or inspector out of the seaman's wages the amount so ordered to be paid by way of reimbursement, and shall pay the residue of the wages to the seaman.

(4) If no order for reimbursement is obtained within the period mentioned in the notice given to the owner as aforesaid, the proportion of wages to be retained by him shall immediately on the expiration of that period and without deduction be payable to the seaman.