The policy, CrewSEACURE, provides up to $10m of cover, and includes personal accident protection, medical expenses as well as subsistence and repatriation costs. It will also respond, unlike any other product currently on the market, in respect of the non-payment of seafarers’ wages, for a period of up to six months. The policy will enable all employers of seafarers to meet Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) obligations, which enter force on 20 August, 2013.
“Not all shipowners and operators will survive the current global recession, and this will inevitably have a knock-on effect on those seafarers who are caught up in the resulting bankruptcy cases,” said Thomas Brown, md. “The only way for seafarers to recover unpaid wages in the absence of any form of financial security is to remain on board until the ship is sold. This serves only to make matters worse for the shipowner as well as for seafarers and their families, who suffer further financial loss and hardship as a result of the long delays that can accompany the judicial sale of a vessel.
“CrewSEACURE removes the need for seafarers to remain on board an abandoned vessel by ensuring that they receive their unpaid wages before being repatriated home to seek new employment opportunities," Brown added.
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