Salvage Rights: Who Owns Abandoned Boats and Cargo

Salvage rights almost never mean “finders keepers.” If you tow a drifting boat, pull a floating container out of the surf, or locate a sunken wreck, what US maritime law usually gives you is a claim for a reward against the owner’s property — not the property itself. The boat, the cargo, and the wreck typically still belong to whoever owned them before they went adrift.

Ownership only transfers in narrow situations: when the owner has genuinely and permanently given up the property, when a state or federal statute assigns title to a government, or when a court says so. Everything else is a lien, a claim, or a bill someone has to pay.

Here’s the part that surprises people most. Abandoning a boat does not make it someone else’s problem for free. Under federal and state law, the last known owner can still be on the hook for marking, removing, and disposing of it — and those bills run into the tens of thousands of dollars. Below is how salvage rights actually work, step by step, and what to do if you find something floating.

What Salvage Rights Actually Give You

Under the traditional law of salvage, a person who voluntarily helps rescue a vessel or cargo in marine peril earns a monetary award proportional to the value of what was saved. Courts secure that award with a maritime lien on the property, so the salvor can hold or arrest the item until paid. The owner keeps title the entire time.

Courts generally require three elements before salvage rights attach: the property was in real marine peril, the help was voluntary rather than contractually owed, and the effort actually succeeded at least in part. Fail any one of them and there is no award.

Timing matters too. Under 46 U.S.C. § 80107(c), a civil action to recover for a salvage service generally must be brought within two years from the date the service was rendered, though a court may extend it in limited circumstances.

The Law of Finds vs. the Law of Salvage

The competing doctrine is the law of finds, which applies only when property is truly abandoned — the owner has relinquished all interest, or is unknown and unreachable. Under that doctrine, the finder can take title. Federal courts strongly prefer salvage over finds, because presuming abandonment strips a real owner of real property.

Abandoned Boats: Who Owns Them and Who Pays

A derelict boat sitting in a marina or grounded on a sandbar is not up for grabs. Title stays with the registered owner until a legal process transfers it. Most transfers happen through state derelict-vessel or abandoned-property statutes, marina lien foreclosures, or admiralty court sales — not through someone simply taking possession.

These procedures vary enormously by state, and the notice periods, hearing rights, and title paths are different almost everywhere. Florida’s abandoned property chapter, for example, uses posted notice and a defined removal window before disposal, and the responsible party is liable for removal, storage, destruction, and disposal costs, less any salvage value recovered.

Do not assume a figure you read about one state applies to yours. Check your state’s boating agency, natural resources department, or fish and wildlife commission, and your county sheriff’s marine unit, for the exact notice period and process where the boat sits.

Sunken Wrecks and the Laws That Override Salvage Rights

Several federal statutes remove entire categories of property from ordinary salvage rights. The Abandoned Shipwreck Act of 1987 asserts US title to abandoned shipwrecks embedded in state submerged lands and transfers that title to the state; wrecks on federal public lands belong to the United States, and wrecks on Indian lands belong to the tribe.

The Sunken Military Craft Act of 2004 goes further. It protects US sunken military craft anywhere in the world and foreign military craft in US waters, and provides that no salvage rights or awards may be granted for US sunken military craft without the express permission of the United States. Time does not erode that protection.

Navigation law adds another layer. Under 33 U.S.C. § 409, an owner whose vessel sinks in a navigable channel must immediately mark it and begin diligent removal; failing to do so is treated as abandonment, and after roughly 30 days the wreck may be removed, sold, or destroyed by the government.

Lost Cargo, Containers, and Things That Wash Ashore

Containers fall off ships more often than most people realize. The World Shipping Council estimated 1,478 containers lost at sea in 2025 out of roughly 250 million shipped — about 0.0005 percent — up from 576 in 2024 and a record-low 221 in 2023, against a 10-year average near 1,274.

Those containers and their contents still belong to the shipper or, once a claim is paid, to the insurer. A washed-up crate is lost property with a known owner, not treasure. Picking it clean can expose you to civil liability and, depending on the jurisdiction and the item, criminal theft charges.

The sensible steps are simple: don’t open or move it, note the location and any container or serial numbers, and call the US Coast Guard (VHF Channel 16 or the local sector) plus your state’s environmental or wildlife agency. Containers can hold hazardous cargo, and reporting also preserves any legitimate salvage rights you might have.

What Most People Get Wrong About Salvage Rights

• “I towed it, so I own it.” Towing a disabled boat usually creates a claim for payment, not ownership. Many tows are ordinary towage under contract, which earns a fee, not a salvage award at all.
• “It’s been there for years, so it’s abandoned.” Courts require evidence the owner intended to give up the property. Long neglect alone rarely proves it.
• “Nobody enforces this.” Federal agencies, states, and insurers do pursue removal costs and conversion claims, and abandoning a vessel carries penalties in most states.
• “A signed salvage form is harmless.” Signing an open-form salvage agreement in the moment can commit you to an award set later by arbitration. Read what you sign, and ask whether it’s a tow or a salvage.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I keep a boat I find drifting?

Generally no. Salvage rights give you a claim for a reward and a lien on the boat, but title stays with the owner unless a court or a state process transfers it. Report the find to the Coast Guard or local marine patrol.

How much is a salvage award worth?

There is no fixed percentage. Courts weigh the danger involved, the value of the property saved, the skill and time expended, and the risk to the salvor’s own equipment. Amounts are decided case by case, so no one can quote you a reliable number in advance.

What happens if I abandon my own boat?

You generally remain the owner of record and can be billed for removal and disposal, plus state penalties. If the wreck obstructs a navigable channel, federal removal authority applies. Contact your state boating agency about legal disposal or donation options instead.

Do salvage rights apply to historic shipwrecks?

Often not. State-owned wrecks under the Abandoned Shipwreck Act are managed through permits, and US sunken military craft are off-limits without express federal permission. Check with the state historic preservation office before touching anything.

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Content last reviewed August 2026. If you notice outdated information, please contact us.

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