Latitude Brokers

Insurance impact of South China Sea ruling

This article can be found here and originally appeared in Insurance Business on 14 July 2016 The decision by an international tribunal to rule against Chinese claims to rights in the South China Sea should have a limited impact on the insurance market, a marine specialist has said. The Permanent Court of Arbitration, based in The Hague, ruled that there ...

Oil and shipping markets on edge after South China Sea ruling – Our Comments

Full story from Reuters can be found here or at www.reuters.com “Global oil and shipping markets reacted nervously on Tuesday after an international arbitration court ruled against Beijing’s claims across large swathes of the South China Sea, fuelling geopolitical tensions in the vital waterway. A tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, found China had breached the sovereign rights of the Philippines ...

Latitude launches in Singapore

We are delighted to announce the opening of Latitude Brokers Pte Ltd in Singapore. We are very pleased to have received approval from the MAS and are excited to be at the centre of Singapore’s vibrant shipping and insurance market. The new operation will be focusing on the operators, traders and offshore contractors within Singapore and, in conjunction with Latitude’s ...

Claims Alert – Fraudulent Bank Accounts (updated again 22 April 2016)

UPDATE 22 APRIL 2016 Further to our advices below, we have received another alert from the International Transport Intermediaries Club (ITIC), a specialist professional indemnity insurer for the transport industry, which shows that the fraudsters continue to find different and elaborate ways to deceive clients in the marine industry. The full circular is available here, but the ITIC specifically advise: ...

Social Media use in a crisis

As we all know, social media in its various forms is a powerful tool of communication used in the shipping industry to raise awareness on ongoing industry issues, create action groups and, of course, for PR (we certainly use it for all three). However, as the Norwegian Hull Club (NHC) have helpfully pointed out in their below ‘alert’ – there ...

Iran Sanctions lifted on 16 January 2016 aka Implementation Day (updated)

Further to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (“JCPOA”) agreed on 14th July 2015, the EU and the United States agreed on 16th January 2016 to partially lift the nuclear-related sanctions against Iran. Whilst operators are certainly eager to engage in commercial activities with Iran, the 2nd largest economy in the region, it is critical first to review the extend ...

Good news for shipowners as IG reinsurance rates down.

A combination of 4 years’ profits for International Group reinsurers, increased market capacity, increased risk retention by the Group’s captive, Hydra, and the use of a third multi-year fixed placement has enabled the Group to negotiate a successful renewal of the General Excess of Loss programme and the excess War P&I cover, resulting in rate reductions for shipowners and charterers ...

The Joint War Committee amends the War Listed Areas

Prompted by the recent reduction in the Indian Ocean High Risk Area defined by BIMCO and referred to in BMP4, the Lloyds Joint War Committee have announced a change in the War Listed Areas on 10th December 2015. The Indian Ocean / Arabian Sea / Gulf of Aden / Gulf of Oman / Southern Red Sea area is reduced on ...

Swedish Club 2016 General Increase announced

The Swedish Club has announced a nil General Increase for the 2016 policy year for both P&I and FD&D classes with any changes in the GXL Reinsurance programme being passed on to Members. Deductibles will be increased by USD1000 for cargo and crew liabilities. Release calls have not been updated yet. The full circular can be found here or on ...

Latitude completes Sailors’ Society 32 kms trek in gruesome weather conditions

Saturday 5th December: It was a blustery day when the Latitude team assembled at dawn with 34 other teams, for a 32 kms journey along the Hong Kong trail to raise money to support the Sailors’ Society. After 3 months of training in the heat, and under blue skies, the conditions were a shocker ! But Latitude support team had been ...