This form is adapted from the Standard Form of Salvage Agreement approved and published by the Committee of Lloyd's. It is the contract most frequently used between salvors and ship owners. When no sum is stipulated in the contract, it becomes Lloyd's Open Form. It is then necessary for a Lloyd's arbitrator to decide the merit of the service and make an award.
Salvors who contract to assist a ship in distress must be paid according to their efforts, even though their services may prove useless to the vessel or cargo, unless by the terms and provisions of the contract their right to compensation depends on success. Ordinarily, a salvage agreement includes a "no cure, no pay" provision allowing compensation only on successful completion of the salvage operation.