PREVENTION OF COLLISIONS ġ S.L.234.20 1
SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 234.20
PREVENTION OF COLLISIONS REGULATIONS
7th November, 2003
LEGAL NOTICE 340 of 2003.
Title.
Regulations.
Interpretation.
requires -
Cap. 234.
"the Collisions Convention" means the Convention on the
International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea signed in
London on the 20th October, 1972 including any amendment or
Protocol related thereto as may from time to time be ratified,
acceded to or accepted by the Government of Malta and other
instruments, standards and specifications of a mandatory nature
related thereto adopted or developed by the International Maritime
Organisation or in terms of regulation 3(2)( a ) hereof.
(2) Unless otherwise defined in these regulations or unless the
context otherwise requires, words and expressions used in these
regulations shall have the same meaning assigned to them in the
Collisions Convention.
Collisions 
Convention given 
force of law in 
Malta.
3. (1) The Collisions Convention as may from time to time be
in force, shall, unless otherwise provided in these regulations and
notwithstanding the provision of any other law, form part of and be
enforceable as part of the Law of Malta and shall apply to all
Maltese ships and to all other ships while they are in Maltese
waters as determined by the said Convention.
(2) The Registrar-General may either on a case by case basis or
through the issue of Merchant Shipping Notices -
( a ) determine, lay down, prescribe, set or specify what
may be required to be determined, laid down,
prescribed, set or specified by these regulations or by
the Collisions Convention, or expound on the
requirements of these regulations or of such
Convention or clarify their applicability or
interpretation; and
( b ) extend any of the provisions of the Collisions
Convention to other classes of Maltese ships or, to
other classes of ships when they are in Maltese waters,
and in so doing, and without prejudice to the generality of the
foregoing, the Registrar-General shall be guided by the circulars,
clarifications, codes, decisions, directives, guidelines, instruments,
interpretations, manuals, notices, publications, recommendations,
regulations, resolutions, rules or any other similar medium of the
International Maritime Organisation or any other body or
2 ġ S.L.234.20 PREVENTION OF COLLISIONS
organization with an appropriate knowledge or competence on the
subject matter.
Duty to ensure 
compliance.
4. It shall be the duty of the owner, of the company which has
assumed the operation of the ship and of the master to ensure that
the ship is in compliance with the provisions of these regulations
and the applicable requirements of the Collisions Convention and
such person, if in fault, shall be liable to the penalties provided for
in the Act.
Provisions of rules 
and regulations 
inconsistent with 
the Collisions 
Convention.
5. Save as provided for in these regulations where any
provisions of any rules and regulations made under the Act are
inconsistent with the provisions of the Collisions Convention, the
provisions of that Convention shall, unless specifically provided
for in such rules or regulations, apply.
