General average, legal basis and applicable law: the overrated significance of the York-Antwerp Rules

General average is generally considered to be one of the maritime law topics which is most uniformly regulated. This study considers that this perception is flawed.
The invariably applicable York-Antwerp Rules do not give a full regime, whereas their applicability generally is contractual only. As a result, questions arise as to which law applies, how the applicable national law is to be determined (what is the impact of the Rome I and II Regulations), and what the national regimes provide. Questions also arise as to what the influence is of contractual provisions set out in contracts for the carriage of goods by sea and general average security forms and how the various sources interact.
These questions are discussed in this study.