It consolidated much of the UK's maritime legislation, repealing several Acts in their entirety and provisions in many more, some dating back to the mid-nineteenth century.

The lead part on British ships was impacted by the outcome of the Factortame case, as the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 was impugned by the Common Fisheries Policy.

The act comprises 316 sections divided into 13 Parts: The Act details British law on entitlement for Ship registration, including qualifications, pre-conditions and the machinery for registration.

Receiver of Wreck is a post defined in Part IX of the Act.

It is an official of the British government whose main task is to process incoming reports of shipwrecks in order to give legitimate owners the opportunity to retrieve their property and ensure that law-abiding finders of wreck receive an appropriate reward.