# The Merchant Shipping (Accident Investigation)Regulations 1989, Regulation 4: Purpose of Investigation


The fundamental purpose of investigating an accident under these Regulations is to determine its circumstances and the causes with the aim of improving the safety of life at sea and the avoidance of accidents in the future. It is not the purpose to apportion liability, nor, except so far as is necessary to achieve the fundamental purpose, to apportion blame.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1172/regulation/4 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/merchant-shipping-accident-investigationregulations-1989/regulation-4
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.