Jettison

Category: legal

The intentional throwing overboard of cargo or ship components to lighten a vessel during an emergency.

Jettison is an ancient, recognized named peril in marine insurance. If a ship is grounding or taking on water, the captain can legally throw cargo overboard to save the lives of the crew and the structure of the vessel, triggering a complex General Average calculation among all stakeholders.

Common Examples

• To stabilize the vessel during the typhoon, the captain ordered the jettison of thirty heavy manufacturing containers.
• The cargo policy explicitly listed jettison as a covered peril, ensuring the exporter was reimbursed for the equipment lost at sea.