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Mutual marine insurer West of England P&I has asked members to notify them if any tankers in their fleet carried heavy fuel oil (HFO) as cargo between February 20, 2017, and February 19, 2018, and were aged 10 years or more at the time.

As in previous years, and in accordance with International Group practice, the club is required to carry out condition surveys of seagoing tankers aged 10 years or more if they carried HFO as cargo during the previous policy year unless the ship:

- has undergone a P&I Club condition survey during the previous 12 months; or

- has undergone a class Special Survey during the previous 6 months; or

- is currently rated as CAP 1 or CAP 2 by an IACS classification society.

If a tanker continues to carry HFO as cargo in successive years, the club is not obliged to carry out an annual condition survey. However, the ship will need to be re-examined at least once every three years, or more frequently, at the club's discretion.

The definition of HFO to be used for the purpose of the annual declaration is: 'A residual fuel with a kinematic viscosity of 380 centistoke or greater when measured at 50 degrees celsius by Test Method ISO 3104'. This definition is intended to exclude intermediate fuel oils and heavy crudes, as well as bitumen and tar.

All club members with an oil tanker entered should complete the annual declaration, which can be viewed and downloaded by clicking here.

For those tankers which did not carry HFO during this period, or if they did carry HFO but were under 10 years of age (for the reporting period), only page 1 should be completed and returned.

Members have been asked to submit their declarations to the West P&I's Loss Prevention Department as soon as possible, but no later than August 31, 2018.