Supplytime Charter Training Course: Hire, Off-Hire and Liability for Offshore Vessels

Programme Summary

The Supplytime charter is the subject of this one-week training course for marine, commercial and contract managers in offshore energy, ending in a Supplytime charter control file for one vessel. Time charters of offshore support vessels run for months, and money is won or lost in hire statements, off-hire events and the allocation of liability when something goes wrong. The programme moves from the structure of the form, through hire and payment and daily operations, to liability, indemnities and insurance. Mars Training Centre UK delivers this programme on the Supplytime charter to mixed-organisation cohorts.

The Business Case

Oil and gas operators, wind developers and vessel owners rely on support vessels for supply, standby and construction work. Disputes usually begin with a hire deduction, a delay during operations or a damage claim where the parties read the form differently. Supplytime charter skills give both sides a shared reading of the contract and a record that settles questions quickly.

• Hire Disputes: Fall when hire statements, off-hire events and deductions are recorded against the contract wording.
• Vessel Utilisation: Improves when instructions, standby and weather time are logged and agreed daily.
• Uninsured Loss: Narrows when liability allocation is checked against the cover each party holds.

Principles and Evidence Base

• SUPPLYTIME: The BIMCO time charter party form for offshore support vessels, applied in every session as the contract text under study.
• Knock-for-Knock Liability Allocation: Assigns loss to the party whose people and property suffer it, applied in Session 4 to the allocation sheet.
• Hire Statement Reconciliation: Checks each payment against days, rate and deductions, applied in Session 2 to the hire statement check.

Intended Participants

• Marine managers who direct chartered vessels and report operating events.
• Commercial managers who agree hire, variations and settlements.
• Contract managers who administer the charter party and its notices.
• Claims and risk advisers who assess loss, indemnity and insurance response.

Typical settings include offshore oil and gas, offshore wind, marine services and vessel ownership.

Learning Outcomes

1. Participants will be able to evaluate how the form allocates duties between owner and charterer.
2. Participants will be able to construct a hire statement check that tests rate, days and deductions.
3. Participants will be able to diagnose whether an event qualifies as off-hire on the contract wording.
4. Participants will be able to prioritise operating instructions and records that protect the charterer's position.
5. Participants will be able to design a liability and insurance map under knock-for-knock terms.
6. Participants will be able to justify a settlement or claim position to an executive sponsor.

Programme Structure

Day 1: Supplytime Charter Structure and Parties

What does the form say, and who carries which duties?

• SUPPLYTIME Form Walkthrough
• Charter Party Parts Map
• Owner and Charterer Duty Matrix
• Vessel Delivery Checklist
• Charter Particulars Sheet

Day 2: Hire, Payment and Off-Hire

How is hire calculated, paid and suspended?

• Hire Statement Check
• Payment and Late Payment Tracker
• Off-Hire Event Log
• Deduction Evidence Sheet
• Hire Dispute Notice Template

Day 3: Operations and Day-to-Day Control

Who directs the vessel, and what happens when plans change?

• Operating Instruction Protocol
• Weather and Standby Record
• Crew and Equipment Change Rules
• Daily Report Format
• Employment Orders Log

Day 4: Liability, Indemnities and Insurance

Who bears which loss, and does insurance respond?

• Knock-for-Knock Allocation Sheet
• Indemnity and Cap Review
• Consequential Loss Test
• Insurance Match Checklist
• Claims Notice Timeline

Day 5: Supplytime Charter Control File for One Vessel

Do the earlier tools join into a file a charter team can run?

• Applying the Session 1 Owner and Charterer Duty Matrix
• Testing the Session 2 Off-Hire Event Log
• Checking the Session 3 Employment Orders Log
• Rehearsing the Session 4 Claims Notice Timeline
• Completing the Supplytime Charter Control File

Methodology

The programme uses case analysis on prepared material for two charters, a standby and supply vessel for an offshore platform and a construction support vessel for a wind farm, each with charter particulars, daily reports, hire statements and correspondence. Participants work in groups, test events against the clauses, take owner and charterer roles in short negotiations and defend their file to peers acting as a sponsor.

• Suggested activity: Deciding which of six delay events are off-hire and showing the evidence for each.
• Suggested activity: Correcting a hire statement that deducts too much and drafting the reply.
• Suggested activity: Tracing a damage incident through the allocation sheet to the insurer.

Capstone Output

Each participant completes a Supplytime charter control file for one vessel. It holds a duty matrix, a hire statement check, an off-hire event log, an allocation sheet and a claims timeline. The file is used at work to brief a sponsor, to run monthly charter reviews and to support settlement talks with the other party.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a programme on the Supplytime charter suitable for managers new to vessel chartering?

Yes. The Supplytime charter is taught through prepared cases and templates. The programme assumes you work with or oversee a chartered offshore vessel, but needs no earlier shipping law training.

Which models does the Supplytime charter work rest on?

The Supplytime charter work rests on the SUPPLYTIME form itself, knock-for-knock liability allocation and hire statement reconciliation, applied to prepared charters.

How is the file from the Supplytime charter used at work?

You use the Supplytime charter control file to brief your sponsor, run monthly reviews, check hire statements and prepare claims or settlement positions.

How does the Supplytime charter differ from a programme on voyage chartering?

The Supplytime charter concentrates on time chartered offshore support vessels, with hire and off-hire over months, while voyage chartering concentrates on single cargo voyages priced by freight.