Protection against the scourge of pirates

Lloyd’s is offering shipowners a new type of kidnap and ransom insurance, following rising levels of piracy attacks around the globe.Specialist intermediary Seacurus and Lloyd’s broker Cooper Gay have launched CrewSEACURE, a new type of marine cover underwritten within Lloyd’s.Captain Thomas Brown, managing director of Seacurus, said the product had been developed in response to the escalating number of armed attacks against vessels throughout the world. He said this often resulted in crews and passengers being taken as hostages with ransoms demanded for their release.”Traditionally, pirates have seized vessels and sought to sell the cargos,” Brown said. “In some cases, they repaint and rename the vessels taken and try to sell them on. However, pirates have started to target the crews because they can ransom them back to the shipowners faster and easier than trying to handle and sell a cargo.”The new insurance policy will provide shipowners with the immediate support of specialists for ransom negotiation and maritime risk management.”It has also been driven by the issues of corporate governance and the need to provide safety and security for their staff,” Brown said. “The product is not just about the security of having the cost of a ransom repaid. It is about the access to expert assistance and advice if an incident should happen.”Brown said Lloyd’s has reviewed “incidents across the world, and the numbers of these types of attacks are growing.” He added that the nature of the cover “means that information on policyholders is closely guarded, but we have already received a number of enquires about the product.”