Never so low the number of losses totals of ships



In 2019 all over the world totals of ships have happened 41 losses, figure that constitutes the historical minim and represents a decrease of beyond the -20% regarding the year precedence and almost the -70% in ten years, period in which is recorded 951 losses totals. It evidences the last relationship "Safety & Shipping Review" of Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) of the insurance group Allianz. Vice versa the number of navigation incidents has turned out in increase of +5% being itself some verified 2,815 last year regarding 2.698 in 2018, so as the demands for compensation for problems to the machinery.

According to the report, the region of southern China (Indo-china, Indonesia and Filippine) remains the place in which the greater losses have been recorded (12 ships in 2019 and 228 in the last decade), a quarter of the world-wide total. Between the factors that contribute to the supremacy of the area there are: the particularly developed commerce, the sold routes of navigation, the advanced age of the fleets, the exposure to typhoons and the problems of safety on some national routes of the ferries. In 2019, for according to consecutive year, however, the losses are diminished. Second Al and to the third party place, instead, the Gulf of Mexico (4) and the coast of Africa Occidentale (3).

Relatively to the type of the ships involved in the incidents, in the 2019 cargo ships (15) they have represented more than a third party of the lost ships. The more frequent cause of the losses totals, three cases on four (31), is the shipwreck (sinking/submersion). Al according to place the bad weather, on five. Between the greater problems of safety there are that relative to the ships for the transport of automobiles and to the ships roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro). The losses totals that involve the ro-ro are in increase regarding the year precedence, so as the incidents of smaller entities (+20%), a trend confirmed also in 2020.

"The increase of the number and the gravity of the lefts on the ships ro-ro - it has observed commander Rahul Khanna, global head of Marine Risk Consulting of AGCS - is worrisome. Regarding the other ships, the ro-ro they can be more exposed to problems than fire and of stability. Many of they have intense turns in the ports, and a series of investigations on the incidents has revealed that the controls of stability before the departure are not carried out as demanded, or they have been based on information on the cargo imprecise. Too much often considerations of commercial nature have put in danger the ships and the crews and are fundamental that this aspect is faced is down that on board".

If the losses totals of ships continue to diminish, the number of marked marine incidents (2,815) is increased of +5% on a yearly basis, due increment above all to the damages to the machinery that they have caused beyond an incident on three (1,044). The increase of the incidents in waters of the British Islands, of the Sea of the North, the English Channel and the Gulf of Biscaglia (605) has done so as that, for the first time from 2011, the Mediterranean oriental does not represent more the main hotspot of the world, with an incident on five all over the world.

"We cannot forget - it has found Baptiste Ossena, global product AGCS leader Hull Insurance - than, while the losses totals have been reduced in meaningful way, the number total of incidents is increased from year to year. The skirmishes of the danger are already obvious: to not it wants a lot us, in fact, because a serious incident is translate in a definitive loss".

In the last year almost 200 fires have been marked, in increase of +13%, that they have carried to five losses totals single in 2019. The cargo declared in wrong way is one of the primary causes. The relationship evidences that the adoption of measures in order to face this problem becomes fundamental, also because the increase of the ships and the increase of the transported range of goods will not make other that to get worse it. The relationship emphasizes moreover that the chemical substances and the batteries more and more often come sent in the container and this represents a serious fire risk if this goods is declared erroneously or stowed in wrong way.

The relationship is stopped also on the impact of the geopolitical tensions and the cyber risk on safety of the marine transport, but also on an unexpected happened crisis at the beginning of this year that can have meaningful repercussions on the shipping. Introducing last relationship AGCS, in fact, it has evidenced that if last year the losses totals of ships have reached the historical minim, however the complicated operating conditions and the economic recession generated by the coronavirus could endanger, in 2020 and in the next few years, the progressive improvement in the long term of safety in the field of the marine transport placing the section in front of to a series of completely new challenges: "the coronavirus - Baptiste Ossena has explained - has hit in a complicated moment for the marine industry, in which all the efforts were turned to the reduction of the emissions and to face issues as the climatic change, the political risks and piracy, but also operating problems as fires. Now the field must exceed an ulterior test: to succeed to operate in a very various world, characterized from a scene that, because of the pandemic, is uncertain is from the economic point of view that they give that of the public health".

AGCS has synthetized in ten the more important challenges with which the field of the shipping must be confronted as a result of the pandemic of Covid-19: the impossibility to change the crew that can influence on state of health of the marine ones, returning the human error more probable on board; the interruption of services and essential maintenance that it can increase the risk of damages to the machinery, already one of the root causes of demands for compensation; the reduction or the delay of the controls established from the law and of the inspections in the practical ports that could carry to the increase of incorrect and to I use it of defective equipments; the excessive pressure which the supply are placed chain that it can make to increase to the number of damages to the cargo and the delays in the deliveries; the ability to answer quickly to an emergency could fail, with serious consequences for those incidents that depend on the external support; the increasing number of cruise ships and oil tankers in disarmament all over the world has as consequence an increase of the costs which had to the potential relative problems to extreme meteorological conditions, to piracy or the political risks.

"The slow down of the economy and the commerce - it has found commander Khanna - is making to leaven the costs for the shipowners. As us standard the experience passed in the management of the crises, the first areas to risk cut is the budgets for the crew and for maintenance. This can have a determining impact on safety of the operations, causing damages or breakdowns, than to they time they can carry to groundings or collisions. He is fundamental - it has emphasized - than the recession does not influence the standards of safety and maintenance".