The importance of co-assurance for ship managers

Ayşegül Wallis, Account Executive at ITIC, spoke with Ester Toumpouris, Partner at Ince in Cyprus, about the “Ocean Victory” Bulk Carrier, which lost steerage and subsequently grounded. The crew were safely evacuated from the vessel before she broke apart. This was followed by the court case in 2006 regarding a breach of the safe port obligation warranty. Even though The Ocean Victory is a case concerning safe port obligation, the Supreme Court thought that the co-assurance clause is equally essential. Due to the co-assurance provisions, the subrogated insurers were not entitled to claim against the demise charterer. In this episode, Ester sheds light on co-assurance and the relevant BIMCO co-assurance clause.