FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF 
THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Second Regular Session 
SENA...T~ 
S.B. No. 
'-'!:~u5, 
) 
) 
) 
'11 
JUL 25 P6:57 
Introduced by Senator JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Philippines consists of 7,107 islands and is surrounded by many of 
Southeast Asia's main water bodies namely the South China Sea, Philippine Sea, Sulu 
Sea, Celebes Sea and Luzon Strait 
Filipinos use the seas and waterways to travel between iSlands on everything 
from massive steel-hulled ferries to wooden dugouts with outriggers. 
Unfortunately. 
with a history of bad weather particularly during the typhoon season, lax maritime safety 
enforcement, aging boats and ferries, this heavy reliance on ferries for transportation 
has often met disaster. 
The most frequent causes of sea accidents are overloading 
and non-compliance by vessels with safety measures. Thousands of passengers have 
passed away because of sea accidents and the families of these victims have not 
recovered their claims from insurance companies. The odds are out for the victims of 
sea tragedies because policies seem to favor ship owners and insurance companies. 
This bill seeks to implement a "no risk, no fault" insurance policy that would 
compel ship owners to pay the claims of all victims of sea tragedies whether they are 
listed in the manifest or not. This insurance will help lower costs by avoiding expensive 
litigation over the causes of accidents while providing quick payments for victims of sea 
tragedies. In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is sought. 
GGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
Senator 


FIFTEENTH CONGRESS OF 
) 
) 
) 
THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
Second Regular Session 
'11 
JUL 25 P 6 :57 
Introduced by Senator JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA 
AN ACT 
AMENDING CHAPTER V, SECTION 14 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9295, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS "THE DOMESTIC SHIPPING DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2004" 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
SECTION 1. Section 14, Chapter V of Republic Act No. 9295, otherwise 
known as "The Domestic Shipping Development Act of 2004," shall be amended as 
follows: 
"Section 14. Compulsory Insurance Coverage for Passenger 
and Cargo. 
-
To meet its financial responsibility for any 
liability which a domestic ship operator may incur for any 
breach of the contract of carriage, every domestic ship 
operators shall be required to submit annually the following: 
1. Adequate 
insurance 
coverage 
for 
each 
passenger in 
an amount to be computed in 
accordance 
with 
existing 
laws, 
rules 
and 
regulations, 
and 
the 
total 
amount 
of such 
coverage 
shall 
be 
equivalent 
to 
the 
total 
number 
of passenger 
accommodations 
being 
offered by the vessel, PROVIDED THAT SUCH 
INSURANCE COVERAGE SHALL INDICATE A 


"NO RISK, NO FAULT" 
CLAUSE AND SHALL 
COVER SHIP PASSENGERS WHETHER OR 
NOT APPEARING IN THE SHIP'S MANIFEST; 
x x x U 
SEC. 2. Repealing Clause. - All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or 
parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended 
or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 3. Separability Clause. - If, for any reason, any provision of this Act 
is declared to be unconstitutional or invalid, the other sections or provisions hereof 
which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect. 
SEC. 4. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days 
following its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general 
circulation. 
Approved,