All our offices are well-versed in working with large companies and global corporations. Having developed working relationships with many of them it became clear that we were ideally situated to provide what we now call 'frontline liaison'.
This is a service provided without direct cost which gives your clients the freedom to call us at any time to discuss any sort of claim issue. If it is a problem which needs insurers' action we know who to speak to without delay.
One example illustrates the worth of this service;
A bulk cargo arrives in port late at night and agriculture officials 'reject' the cargo due to contamination. The ship's agent contacts the insured who then needs to call the broker. The insured's shipping manager is at dinner, the broker is on holiday and messages are left. The insurer does not receive the claim advice until later the next day.
In the meantime the P&I Club system is well underway (they are fast aren't they!) with a surveyor appointed and on the spot. By the time the cargo insurer's surveyor arrives legal intervention has been initiated and access to the vessel is severely restricted.
However, if the client had known they could contact us straightaway we could have assisted with an initial assessment and, if necessary, been on the spot directly representing the cargo insurer's interests. It is not unknown for the cargo surveyor to gain approved access to such vessels and gather vital evidence possibly even before the P&I surveyor's (or lawyer) arrival.
This service is, as might be realised, very much akin to P&I Clubs' agency systems. A ship's Master has access to 'friendly' advice anywhere in the world without needing to wait for head office to wake up. Within Australsia and the Pacific Island region we can provide the same service for cargo insurers.
While we are certainly not lawyers we have the experience to know whether or not urgent legal intervention is required at the outset of a casualty. This is one of the reasons we maintain good working relationships with regional maritime lawyers, be they on 'our' side or 'theirs'.
Please call any of our senior surveyors to discuss how the service can be initialised.