Insurance Options News

Steven Candito is the Founder, President and CEO of Foresea, which provides advisory services including strategic planning, regulatory compliance and crisis management to the maritime and environmental communities. Previously, Candito was President and CEO of NRC. He has extensive experience with OPA 90 compliance issues with particular focus on vessel owner and insurance matters. Before that, Candito was an attorney with Haight Gardner Poor & Havens, specializing in maritime and environmental law. Candito has also served as a marine engineer aboard Exxon USA’s domestic tanker fleet. He is a graduate of Hofstra University School of Law and the United States Merchant Marine Academy.

Continental Underwriters, Ltd. is a national, multiline firm for all types of marine coverage. The firm offers both admitted and non-admitted products in all 50 states, packaged in flexible, competitively priced insurance options with broad terms and conditions for even the most unusual, complex, and hard-to-place risks. Continental’s 45 years of success ensures that insured’s receive extensive access, tailor-made coverage, and a high level of expertise directly from experienced brokers and underwriters. Continental is part of the FGH family of companies.

2235 N. President & CEO: H. Elder Brown, Jr. Continental Underwriters, Ltd. is a national, multiline firm for all types of marine coverages. The firm offers both admitted and non-admitted products in all 50 states, packaged in flexible, competitively priced insurance options with broad terms and conditions for even the most unusual, complex, and hard-to-place risks. Continental’s 44 years of success ensures that insured’s receive extensive access, tailor-made coverage, and a high level of expertise directly from experienced brokers and underwriters.

The news this week that a longshoremen’s strike had effectively stopped cargo operations at the port of Baltimore, a major hub for foreign car imports into the U.S., underlines a new warning by The Strike Club. Strikes by stevedores continue to dominate the list of perils causing delays, reports the mutual insurer after a recent analysis of its claims files. In the 2012-2013 policy year, they accounted for 16.8%, followed by collision (14.4%), closure of port or sealane (13.6%), and strikes by port workers (also 13.6%). Total net claims for the year were $16.8m, with mutual claims accounting for $12.0m net. A somewhat similar picture emerges from a review of the five-year period 2008-2013: closure of port or sealane (17.2%)…

“It’s important that boat owners understand the details of their hurricane coverage before a storm approaches,” said Eric Baillargeon, GEICO Insurance Agency boat program manager. Hurricane haul-out protection typically reimburses boat owners a percentage of the cost to move a boat to a safe location when a hurricane watch or warning is issued. Some insurance carriers will also cover expenses such as storage or mooring fees, strapping down and re-launching the boat in calmer waters once the storm has passed. “It’s much more cost-effective to move a boat to a secure area than to risk facing a dangerous hurricane,” said Baillargeon.

An essential part of spring cleaning is sorting through what you have, deciding what needs to be kept, and throwing out what can safely be eliminated. The tidy end result lets you move forward in the best shape possible. An annual “spring cleaning” of insurance coverage is equally valuable for a business operation. Whether the economy is booming and cash flow is substantial, or times are tight and shaving costs is essential, a business should step back at least once a year, take a look at its assets, and evaluate its current risk management strategy. The goal is to make sure the company is maximizing its benefit from premium dollars.