Conception Deaths Spark New Owner Liability Law

Federal lawmakers have changed a 19th-century maritime liability rule for accident victims and their families. It was in response to the 2019 boat fire off the coast of Santa Barbara, California, that killed 34 people but left the victims' families with no compensation.

The Small Passenger Vessel Liability Fairness Act updates the Limitation of Liability Act of 1851, which held that vessel owners could limit their financial accountability for any losses incurred, including loss of life, to the value of the vessel's remains. In the case of the liveaboard Conception, where an inferno trapped 33 passengers and one crew member in the bunkroom below deck three years ago, the boat was a total loss. Although the craft was clearly unsafe, nothing was left for the victims' families.

Under the new law, reports the Associated Press, owners of small passenger vessels can be held legally responsible for damages in accidents and incidents, regardless of the boat's value afterward.

Sponsored initially by California Democrats Rep. Salud Carbajal and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the new law is not retroactive.

The 1851 law was a time-tested legal maneuver that has been successfully employed by owners of vessels from the Titanic to countless others, some as small as jet skis. It originated in 18th-century England and was meant to promote the shipping business. Another lawsuit, filed by the Conception's owners to limit their liability, remains ongoing in federal court.

DEMA, the Dive Equipment and Marketing Association, opposed this law, urging members in early December to contact Congress, saying that "dive operators around the country that use small passengercarrying vessels as part of their dive business are already reporting exponential increases in their premiums . . . [The law] impacts all small vessel operators and does nothing to improve safety. It just requires [you] to increase [your] liability insurance in case [you] get sued after an accident."

Sport divers could expect to pay a bit more for boat dives in the U.S. as insurance costs get passed on. Then again, they can also expect safer boats. Because of the Conception tragedy, it seems unlikely that any company will insure a patently unsafe boat, and no reasonable owners would want to face a liability lawsuit that would conceivably aim higher than their liability limits and go after their personal assets.

- Ben Davison