While the CLC 1992 and the 2001 Bunker Convention are both strict liability regimes requiring compulsory insurance and allowing direct action against insurers, they are mutually exclusive in scope: the CLC 1992 focuses specifically on pollution from tankers carrying persistent oil as cargo, whereas the Bunker Convention fills the "gap" by covering fuel oil spills from non-tanker vessels (such as bulkers and container ships). A critical distinction lies in their structure, as the CLC provides a specialised multi-tier compensation system linked to the IOPC Fund with its own internal liability limits, while the Bunker Convention lacks an international fund and relies on separate regimes like the LLMC for limitation of liability, making liability under the bunker convention much smaller.

Barry discusses both funds and explains why owners may try and apply the bunker convention over the 1992 CLC to limit their liability. The case of the tanker 'Prestige' is used to demonstrate how this is sometimes forced.

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