Under its Class 1 Rules, the Club provides Protection and Indemnity (P&I) cover for a wide range of liabilities that arise from commercial shipping operations. The types of liabilities that are covered are defined by the Rules, but include those arising in respect of cargo, crew, personal injury to third parties, passengers, stowaways, collision and non-contact damage caused by vessels, damage to fixed and floating objects, pollution, fines and wreck removal. Crew and cargo claims generally comprise about 60% of the number of claims incurred in any year.
Under the Club’s Class 2 Rules, cover is available for what is generally referred to as Freight Demurrage and Defence (FD&D) cover which provides insurance for a proportion of legal costs incurred in respect of certain categories of dispute defined under the Rules of Class 2. This cover is discretionary.
Further details of these and other covers provided by the Club can be found in the Rules and Covers page in this section of the website.
The handling of claims represents a significant proportion of the daily work undertaken by the Managers’ London representatives. Effective and professional claims management and advice is essential if claims are to be either avoided or contained. The Members’ insurance costs are directly related to claims incurred, and a vital objective of the Club’s claims handling strategy is to ensure that a Member’s potential liability arising from any particular incident is accurately identified, and the likely financial exposure determined at the earliest possible opportunity. Dependable claims reserving is essential to minimise the potential for volatility in the Club’s claims figures, and to maintain the Club’s financial stability.
Claims advice and management is provided by dedicated claims teams within three syndicates covering broad geographical areas of the Club’s Membership. Each claim team contains the resources necessary to handle claims in respect of the full spectrum of liabilities to which the Members for whom it is responsible are likely to be exposed. In the event of a serious casualty, or an incident requiring more specific expertise, the wider resources of the Managers’ London representatives will be used as necessary. Members are encouraged to discuss issues arising from their operations with the Syndicate Claims Team responsible for handling their account in order that matters that may have a potential claims impact can be identified and risks managed accordingly. Further information concerning the organisation of the Syndicate Claims Teams is contained in the corresponding page in this section of the website.
The teamwork that is essential for proper claims management is the core philosophy behind the Club’s claims handling CD – “A Team Effort”. The Claims Handling Guide page of this section of the website contains more information about this guide and detailed commentary on the handling of various categories of claim.
The Managers’ London representatives monitor claims developments and trends, and analyse the causes of major claims. Where necessary, further information will be given by means of Circulars, Sea Venture or website articles, or Loss Prevention publications.
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