Tag: IUMI

The change in ice conditions is opening the high Arctic as a trade route, fishing ground and potential tourism destination, but more infrastructure support is required to facilitate the provision of adequate insurance, says IUMI in a new position paper.

Against the backdrop of encouraging global economic growth and an improved outlook for the shipping industry, the International Union of Marine Insurance provided an overview on the current state of the hull, cargo and offshore energy insurance markets, on the sidelines of its Spring Conference in Hamburg.

The European Commission conducted a public consultation about electronic documents for freight carriage during the period of mid-November 2017 until mid-January 2018. The survey covered issues such as the acceptance of electronic freight documents by EU member states, banks, and insurance companies, and challenges related to interoperability. 

During IACS’ 76th Council Meeting, the members that participated viewed IACS' new initiatives, which aim at the development and implementation of new technologies, including ship autonomy. IACS updated the participants regarding recent developments on its current work and plans, including cyber security and preparation for the 2020 sulphur cap and cyber safety.

29 people were injured and at least 20 cars were damaged, during a fire that broke out on the passenger ferry 'Tariq-Ibn-Ziyad', which had started its route from Marseille and was heading to Algeria.

Speaking in Tokyo, James McDonald, chairman of IUMI’s Offshore Energy Committee, warned that the sector was “sinking”.  His warning was based on declining total premium income set alongside upstream energy large losses for 2015-16 of USD 4.8 billion. 

With the growing size of container vessels, and a recent spate of fires on board these ships, the International Union of Marine Insurance is concerned that current firefighting provisions are insufficient and has published a position paper calling for better on board firefighting systems for container vessels.

The International Union of Marine Insurance presented its annual statistical report on the marine insurance market, reporting that global marine underwriting premiums for 2016 fell to USD 27.5 billion, a 9% reduction on the figure reported for 2015. 

The International Unit of Marine Insurance announced that it supports the efforts of the IMO, classification societies and shipowner associations to understand, assess and mitigate the risk of cyber threats, in order to make them more transparent and understandable to operators.

Rising energy claims against a reducing premium base; and the increased cargo accumulation risk onboard vessels and in port continue to challenge marine insurers. Statistics released at the International Union of Marine Insurance Annual Spring meeting in Hamburg, last week, raise a series of issues that will continue to challenge marine underwriters for the foreseeable future.