Subjects: Meaning in Ship Chartering
Subjects are the conditions that a charter depends on. A ship is "fixed on subjects" when the main terms are agreed, but the deal is not final until the conditions are lifted.
What subjects are
When a charterer and a ship operator agree the main terms, they often do it by a message that says "fixed on subjects". The agreement is real but conditional: each subject is a condition that one side can still check. When all subjects are lifted, the fixture is clean and final, and the fixture recap is written.
Common subjects
Approval of the ship or its details by the charterer, by the receivers or by the oil or cargo company; the confirmation of the cargo or the stem; the approval of the ports and the berths; the approval of the charter party form; the confirmation of the freight, the board of the company or a stated financing. Each subject should have a time limit.
How they are lifted
The side that holds the subject tells the other side in writing that it is lifted, or that it fails. A common rule is to set a deadline, for example "subjects to be lifted by 16:00 London time tomorrow", and to say that the fixture falls if nothing is said. Both sides keep a record of the time of every message.
What if a subject fails
If a subject is not lifted by the deadline, or it fails, the agreement normally ends without a duty to pay damages, if the wording says so. If the wording is loose, a dispute can follow, so the text of the subjects and the deadline should be exact. A charterer should not tell its buyer that a ship is secured until the main subjects are lifted.
Good practice
Keep the list short and clear, lift subjects as soon as you can, and ask the other side to confirm every lift. See the guide on how to charter a ship for the steps before and after the fixture.
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Related guides
More in glossary
- Voyage Charter
- Time Charter
- Trip Time Charter
- Contract of Affreightment (COA)
- Time Charter vs Voyage Charter
- Laytime
- Demurrage and Despatch
- Notice of Readiness
- Shipowner, ship operator, disponent owner
- Ship broker
- Bulk carrier
- Deadweight tonnage (DWT)
- Bill of lading
- Freight
- Baltic Dry Index
- Lien
- Off-hire
- Bunkers
- FIO and FIOS
- Cancelling date
- Ton-mile
- Statement of facts
- Letter of indemnity
- Ballast voyage
- Dead freight
- Lighterage
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