Under national and international regulations, Jamaica has responsibility to conduct investigation into any casualty occurring to ships under its flag and or involving any ship operating in Jamaican territorial seas. Marine Inspectors employed at the MAJ are assigned to investigate shipping accidents.
National regulations require the operator or owner of a recreational vessel to file a boating accident report with the MAJ if the recreational vessel is involved in an accident that results in any of the following:
- A person dies whilst onboard;
- A person is injured onboard and requires medical treatment beyond first aid;
- A person disappears from the vessel under circumstances that indicate death or injury
- Damage to vessel involving circumstances pertaining to the loss, stranding, grounding, abandonment or material damage to a vessel, or damage caused by a vessel (including pollution damage) to the environment.
The Report should be made to the MAJ within 48 hours from the time of the accident. The information provided is used to establish regulations and safety standards, identify
and remedy boat defects, educate recreational boaters, capture statistical data, investigate
accidents, and measure the effectiveness of boating safety programs.