License Insurance News

Sponsored Content:Every year, many professional mariners become involved in accidents that trigger a USCG investigation.Imagine working aboard a vessel and, suddenly, you’re involved in a maritime accident that triggers a Coast Guard investigation. In the blink of an eye, your career and USCG license are in serious jeopardy. Every year, this scenario is reality for professional mariners throughout the U.S. Fortunately, MOPS Marine License Insurance can change that.What is Marine…

Sponsored Content:Every year, many professional mariners become involved in accidents that trigger a USCG investigation.Imagine working aboard a vessel and, suddenly, you’re involved in a maritime accident that triggers a Coast Guard investigation. In the blink of an eye, your career and USCG license are in serious jeopardy. Every year, this scenario is reality for professional mariners throughout the U.S. Fortunately, MOPS Marine License Insurance can change that.What is Marine…

Sponsored Content:Every year, many professional mariners become involved in accidents that trigger a USCG investigation.Imagine working aboard a vessel and, suddenly, you’re involved in a maritime accident that triggers a Coast Guard investigation. In the blink of an eye, your career and USCG license are in serious jeopardy. Every year, this scenario is reality for professional mariners throughout the U.S. Fortunately, MOPS Marine License Insurance can change that.What is Marine…

It was a beautiful mid-summer afternoon in the nation’s heartland. The skies were clear, the sun was shining and the variable southwest breeze barely caused a ripple on the muddy water of the winding river. Optimistic fishermen lined the riverbanks and a few recreational boaters were cruising close to the floating docks lining both shores.This tranquil scene on this busy waterway was about to change…and quickly.A parting of the waysAbout a half mile upriver, a 95-foot tug was proceeding southbound on a slow bell with two barges made up end-to-end along her starboard side.

Vessel collisions on America’s busy inland waterways have been a fact of life for a very long time. With towboats, barges, ferries, oceangoing ships and recreational vessels all jockeying for position in limited space, collisions (and even more near misses) are inevitable.Most of these incidents involving professional mariners do not lead to suspension and revocation (S&R) proceedings against the involved USCG licensed mariners, but, depending on the human and/or financial costs associated with the collision…

“Your true pilot cares nothing about anything on earth but the river, and the pride in his occupation surpasses the pride of kings.” -Mark Twain, Life on the Mississippi (1883).That statement made by the great chronicler and river pilot over 137 years ago is arguably as true today as it was then. But what has changed dramatically in the almost century and a half since then is the variety and complexity of the daily challenges that river pilots confront on our increasingly busy inland waterways.

The twists and turns of any marine casualty investigation can be unpredictable, but what is predictable is the potentially crushing cost to defend your license, livelihood and professional reputation.It was early afternoon on a late summer day in a busy commercial and fishing port in coastal New England. The captain of an offshore supply vessel was returning to his company’s dock and was lining up to transit past the harbor’s fixed storm mitigation gate when he decided to ‘bail out’ on his approach because the tide was ebbing and the outbound current of approximately two knots was offsetting his vessel to the east. No stranger to these waters…

Mariners looking for insurance have a new option that is touted as being fast and affordable, cared for immediately in an online format that is designed to be more expedient than ever.360 Coverage Pros launched a new Marine License Insurance Program for mariners that offers an entirely online buying experience combined with low monthly payment options and instant proof of coverage.Until now, the process of securing a marine license insurance policy involved requesting quotes,…

Familiarity can and does breed contempt. You don’t need anything else added to that heavy burden.We live and work in a frenetic environment replete with a wide range of both human and technological distractions. When those two elements came together on the bridge of a towboat traveling downriver to pick up a load of empty barges, the result was career-changing for the vessel’s first mate, who was on the wheel. It was yet another costly reminder of the need for professional mariners…

An allision in the maritime sector is defined as an accident in which a moving object strikes a stationary object (bridge fender, bridge deck, dock, dredging vessel, etc.). According to the Maritime Law Association (MLA) such an accident calls the “Oregon Rule” into play. Simply put, the Oregon Rule states that “…when a moving object hits a stationary object, the moving object is presumed at fault. The moving vessel thus has the burden of proving an alternate theory of causation…

It was a warm and sunny early summer morning in an increasingly popular and typically busy domestic harbor. And, not surprisingly, the water and waterfront were crowded with commercial and private vessels of every description. From a slowly moving tug/barge combination, a working dredge and a small tanker delivering fuel on the more industrial side of the harbor, to numerous water taxis, sightseeing boats and larger catamaran ferries, the harbor was buzzing with activity.All of these commercial vessels were operating in close quarters with a fleet of small yachts…

A generally sound assumption to make is that many recreational boaters operating power boats and sailing vessels are not very familiar with the maritime Rules of the Road that their professional mariner counterparts understand and adhere to. The unfortunate consequence is a wide array of marine casualties and incidents from collisions, allisions, capsizings, groundings, wake damage, many unreported and countless near misses. Another safe assumption is that it’s almost certain that when a professional mariner gets involved with a recreational boater, the authorities, most notably the U.S.

Professional captains and pilots in all sectors of the maritime industry confront daunting challenges and hazards every day on every trip. From piloting oceangoing ships into congested harbors and safely docking them, to navigating ferries, tourist vessels and water taxis through harbors and rivers teaming with other commercial vessels and recreational craft and everything in between, U.S Coast Guard licensed deck officers have one of the most difficult, pressure-packed jobs in any industry.

As summer slowly fades to memory and commercial vessels have less frequent encounters with recreational vessels of all sizes, shapes and descriptions on America’s inland waterways, it might be a good time to review a strange, but not completely unusual incident that occurred in Louisiana on a navigable channel in the lower Mississippi River late last May. A workboat was pushing a small barge through a narrow tributary on a job to deliver it to its destination approximately twelve miles away from where the transit originated.

Since 1935, MOPS Marine License Insurance has defended the USCG licenses of mariners operating in every maritime sector in the United States. Its network of over 80 maritime law firms, representing almost 200 experienced maritime attorneys, provides MOPS policyholders with personal legal representation from the marine casualty to final disposition. MOPS provides Unlimited License Defense, Full or Partial Income Protection, Civil Legal Defense, Civil Penalty Defense, Criminal Defense, Professional Liability, and Professional Equipment/Instruments Protection. The firm has 12 employees.

It has been said that the vast majorities of collisions at sea occur in near perfect weather conditions. That trend can also be applied to the inland river system. Not too long ago, it was a beautiful mid-summer afternoon in the nation’s heartland. The skies were clear, the sun was shining and the variable southwest breeze barely caused a ripple on the muddy water of the winding river. Hopeful fishermen lined the riverbanks and a few recreational boats were cruising close to the floating docks lining both shores. This tranquil scene on this busy waterway was about to change … and quickly.

Precision Is Imperative. The statement made by the great chronicler and river pilot himself over 130 years ago is arguably as true today as it was then. But what has changed dramatically in the six score and 10 years since is the variety and complexity of the daily challenges that river pilots confront in our modern world. The sophistication of locks, dams and the proliferation of bridges, the mercurial fluctuations in water levels and the consequences to those who fail to factor in all of the above when planning their commercial river trips can be career killers.

Valuable Lessons Learned – the Hard Way. Unfortunately, vessel collisions on America’s busy (but too often overlooked) inland waters have been a fact of life for a very long time. With towboats, barges, ferries, oceangoing vessels and recreational vessels all jockeying for position in limited space, many collisions, and even more near misses, are bound to happen. And while, thankfully, most of these incidents involving professional mariners do not lead to suspension and revocation proceedings against the involved licensed mariners…

As the summer wind comes blowing in, many professional mariners are painfully aware that the routes they normally ply with other commercial vessels for most of the year will be filled with all types of recreational craft. From sailboats and private fishing boats to speedboats and jet skis. Some of the busiest rivers, lakes, bays and harbors in the United States become extremely crowded with pleasure boaters who may or may not be familiar with the Rules of the Road when it comes to encounters with commercial vessels. In 2001, Captain Jack Sparks, who was then president of the American Pilots Association, told a reporter for The Journal of Commerce who asked about the impending start of the recreational boating season in the Mid-Atlantic States: “I am serious about this. They get in our way.

In the June issue of Marine News, we outlined the advantages of adding MOPS License Insurance protection to your deck and engineering officers' employee benefit package to help not only recruit but retain your key personnel in this very competitive employee environment. We pointed out that MARAD studies starkly declare that there are not enough qualified license mariners to meet the industry's needs and that 88% of respondents to a recent MARAD survey reported that licensed officer retention issues have negatively impacted their business operations. In response to the article, many Marine News readers responded that they take care of their licensed officers internally and react to any inquiries regarding marine casualties or reportable incidents as required.