BOW WAVE 623

Bow Wave Issue 623--Many Modes of Locomotion Edition

news and views on trade, insurance and risk

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(c)2012 WavyLine.com	Issue No 623 14 Jan 12
Published free of charge to Readers
Editor: Sam Ignarski
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In this issue:

1. Welcome
2. PL Ferrari Urges Clubs to Certify EU Passenger Liability for War Risks
3. Guest Column
4. Russian Club
5. The Laboratory of Transport Theft
6. And Finally...

1. Welcome

Poem of the Week

A Description of London

Houses, churches, mixed together,
Streets unpleasant in all weather;
Prisons, places contiguous,
Gates, a bridge, the Thames irriguous.

Gaudy things enough to tempt ye,
Showy outsides, insides empty;
Bubbles, trades, mechanic arts,
Coaches, wheelbarrows and carts.

Warrant, bailiffs, bills unpaid,
Lords of laundresses afraid;
Rogues that nightly rob and shoot men,
Hangmen, aldermen and footmen.

Lawyers, poets, priests, physicians,
Noble, simple, all conditions:
Worth beneath a threadbare cover,
Villainy bedaubed all over.

Women black, red, fair and grey,
Prudes and such as never pray,
Handsome, ugly, noisy, still,
Some that will not, some that will.

Many a beau without a shilling,
Many a widow not unwilling;
Many a bargain, if you strike it:
This is London! How d'ye like it?

John Banks

New Readers this week include:-

Bradleigh-Aaron Mcarthur of RK Harrison Insurance Brokers Gary Krist of Aon in London
P&I Coresspondent Florence Raymond Gourlet in Marseille

News of Readers

At its December 2011 meeting in London, the World Shipping Council (WSC) board confirmed the election of Mr. Ng Yat Chung, Group President and CEO of NOL, to the WSC board of directors for a term that expires in September 2013. The election of Mr. Ng fills all eleven seats on the WSC Board. Other board members are: Mr. Philip Chow, Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL); Mr. Thomas Crowley, Jr., Crowley Maritime Corporation; Mr. Rafi Danieli, Zim Integrated Shipping Services; Mr. Morten Englestof, Maersk Line; Dr. Ottmar Gast, Hamburg Sud; Mr. Y.M. Kim, Hanjin Shipping; Mr. Ulrich Kranich of Hapag-Lloyd AG; Mr. Kenji Mizushima, NYK Line; Mr. Wan Min, COSCO Container Lines; and Mr. Ron Widdows who will continue to serve as the WSC Board Chairman until September 2012.

The Workboat Academy and Houston Marine, a member of the Falck Alford Group, have signed an agreement to offer the Workboat Mate Program at the Houston Marine’s campus in New Orleans. Classes are scheduled to begin during the fall of 2012. The Workboat Mate Program is currently being offered at the MITAGS-PMI campuses in Baltimore and Seattle.

The Workboat Mate Program, a two-year vocational program, includes 360 days at sea with a partner company in a billeted position and 26 weeks of classroom time. Upon successful completion of the program and the USCG exam, cadets will obtain a Mate 500GRT Oceans / 1600 GRT Near Coastal, an AB limited and a Mate of Towing, if employed on a tugboat. Cadets sailing on offshore supply vessels will obtain a Mate 1600 GRT Oceans and will obtain an AB-OSV rating after one year.

http://www.workboatacademy.com

Mark Allison, of claims and recovery agents W K Webster (International) Pte Ltd in Singapore, has been made a Director of that company with responsibility for all cargo claim related activities. Mark joined the WKW London office in 1995 and spent a stint with WKW Singapore in 2003-2005 before returning to London and then made the move back to Singapore in 2010. WKW have offices in London, Singapore and New York and handle cargo, hull and liability claims for insurers worldwide.

http://www.wkwebster.com

Pope Benedict has named various bishops who will shortly be made Cardinals. Included in this list is the Archbishop who oversees the Apostleship of the Sea, Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, President of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travellers.

Readers Write

From John Green of the Apostleship of the Seas

Seafarers' charity Apostleship of the Sea has spoken of how its chaplain helped passengers on board the Costa Concordia, which sank off the Italian coast on Friday night. The cruise ship was carrying thousands of passengers and hundreds of crew.Three people are confirmed dead with dozens still missing.The chaplain onboard assisted shocked crew and passengers, including those injured.

National Director of the Apostleship of the Sea in Italy Fr Giacomo Martino, said, 'The work of cruise chaplains onboard is of great value to encourage and support crew and passengers at difficult moments.’

He praised the crew of the ship. 'The crew worked to save passengers with great generosity and a spirit of selflessness.’

Thousands of passengers have begun to arrive at the Savona cruise terminal where the local Apostleship of the Sea is joining other agencies to distribute clothing and food. It is also providing spiritual and emotional support.The priest and parishioners on the island of Giglio, where the ship sank, worked during the night to assist those leaving the ship.

Fr Giacomo called for prayers to be offered for those who have died and those missing.

Each year the Apostleship of the Sea deploys chaplains on many cruise lines to support the pastoral and practical welfare of crew and passengers.

Last year more than 700 cruise chaplains provided 15,000 days of cruise chaplaincy across the world.

mailto:JohnGreen@apostleshipofthesea.org.uk

AfterOfficeHours News

Note from the Editor

On the first morning of the Costa Concordia casualty comes a thoughtful piece from Messrs PL Ferrari and a timely reminder of coming changes in relation to Liabilities to Passengers in the EU.

The edition also features a greater variety of locomotion than is customary in Bow Wave.

Enjoy!

2. PL Ferrari Urges Clubs to Certify EU Passenger Liability for War Risks

Specialist brokers PL Ferrari write:-

Reference is made to P.L. Ferrari’s Newsletter no. 14/11 (9th September, 2011) in which examination was made of the EU PLR and the 2002 Protocol to the 1974 Athens Convention. In particular we have been focusing on the consequent requirement for blue card issuance to ferry and other passenger vessels Operators certifying compulsory insurance in respect of liabilities under the legislation. Our concern was, specifically, in respect of the EU PLR because the certification of the relevant insurance satisfying the PLR will be a mandatory requirement from 31st December, 2012.

In the Newsletter we anticipated the likelihood of the Clubs’ agreement to non-war risk certification despite misgivings about the dilution of the principles surrounding issuance of certification and, in particular, the accession to legislation emanating from Regional Economic Integration Organisations (such as the EU) rather than from International Conventions.

The IG Club Boards have now all considered the issue and the Group has agreed to the issuance of Blue Cards for non-war risk liabilities in respect of both internationally and domestically trading voyages that are covered by the EU PLR. In doing so the IG Clubs have taken into consideration that the EU itself and the EU states (as decided by the EU Parliament and pending that decision’s endorsement by the EU Council) will soon start the process for the ratification of the 2002 Protocol. It still remains the case that only a small number of States have so far ratified the 2002 Protocol and it appears unlikely that the 2002 Protocol will have entered into force before the effective date of the EU PLR.

As our earlier Newsletter remarked, the EU PLR is very similar to the Athens Convention and, specifically, the 2002 Protocol. It is also important to remember that it also specifically refers to the 2006 IMO Guidelines concerning compensation for war/terrorist risk.

It should be repeated that the agreement to the certification which has now been considered by the IG Club Boards is for non-war risk certification only. The International Group Clubs do not at present cover primary P&I war risk liabilities and cannot certify for uncovered risks. The Clubs do however already offer coverage for excess P&I war risk liability (currently International Group Club Rules cover P&I war risk liabilities excess of hull value or US $100m., whichever is the lower, up to a maximum limit of US$500m. any one occurrence).

However the possibility of offering cover, and hence certifying, also primary P&I war risk liabilities is now being considered and will be debated by individual Club Boards in the first half of 2012.

The P.L. Ferrari View

--The right to freedom of movement is a fundamental of the European Union. --The provision of certification by International Group Clubs also for currently non-covered risks (i.e. primary P&I war risks) will resolve a significant problem for their passenger carrying membership.

Read the arguments in full by clicking on the link below:-

http://tinyurl.com/86koz8g

3. Guest Column

We are grateful to Geoffrey Frith, the President & CEO of Container Ship Management Ltd in Bermuda for this account.

Dog Sledding Saga

So here we are having a winter vacation in Ontario and decide to do something different and pleasant as a winter diversion - how about trying Dog Sledding!

The Haliburton Forest & Wild Life Reserve, www.haliburtonforest.com , located on 70,000 acres of rolling hardwood forests, beautiful lakes, meandering rivers and extensive wetlands in the Haliburton Highlands of northern Ontario offers dog sledding tours and is close to our place in Bobcaygeon so after discussion with Eileen we decide that this is a great activity to try and to hell with the one hour introductory tour we are going for a half day one, Eileen, Alex (her boyfriend) and myself. It will just be a pleasant afternoon meandering through wide, flat snow covered trails - at least that is what the picture shows, great exercise for the dogs but not much for the humans. HA!

I do not know about the dogs but I was absolutely exhausted and my legs were complete jelly by the end of the afternoon - actually the dogs looked like they were still roaring to go. You have seen pictures of people sitting on a dog sled cocooned in blankets while a musher guides the sled - well we were the mushers and I certainly would not have wanted to be sitting on the sled that I was supposed to be in control of!

First the sleds - obviously well designed for the function but very basic, none of the conveniences we come to expect with modern means of personal transport (cars) such as suspension, power steering and power brakes. You feel every bump, and there were lots of them as I will explain in more detail later, and then the brakes. Looked like one half of a steel bear trap, you press it down in the snow and ice to slow the sled and if necessary jump on with both feet - and again you feel every bump. Any passenger sitting on this sled would have had a very sore bottom after three hours on the trail - assuming they had been able to stay on the sled.

Let me explain the bumps. There was plenty of lovely, soft looking snow, but a few days before we had icy snow which left half an inch of ice on the surface (I know as I had to chip it off the skating rink, sorry our driveway) which was then covered with a slight dusting of new soft snow. It looked lovely but this ice made the trails very hard and exposed every little, and the many not so little, dips, rises and rocks - some of which I swear were boulders!

It was a small group; our guide in the lead sled, then me in a single sled and Eileen and Alex in a double sled (this did not mean that one of them got to sit they both had to steer and brake and had more dogs to control). Our guide, who was a lovely and helpful young lady, gave us some basic instructions and then pointed to a narrow trail through the woods and said she would go for a short distance and then stop and each sled was to come after her. She disappeared out of sight and I set off - I swear the trail was only wide enough for the sled with about an inch either side before the trees and bush closed in. These dogs only know one speed and that is full speed ahead - we went roaring done this trail with the sled and me bouncing feet into the air and careening off trees on either side; after what seemed an eternity but was probably only five seconds I saw our guide stopped ahead and jumped on the brake with both feet and finally came to a stop after my dogs had run over the guide. Amazingly I had not yet fallen off the sled - but was exhausted and shaking with fear. When Alex and Eileen caught up the guide said what a lovely day to go dog sledding and where we OK and having fun. I gritted my teeth and something close to a yes came out - I did not want to disappoint Eileen and Alex by giving up already or appearing to be a coward.

So off we went again - now you are supposed to be able to steer these sleds by shifting you body weight as you do riding a bike or skiing; having experience with both I thought that this would be a piece of cake. Well my sled had a mind of its own and I could not steer if my life depended upon it. If I shifted my weight to one side the only thing that happened was that the sled tilted alarmingly to that side and I would be careening along on only one ski (if that is what you call the thingy). Afterwards Eileen said I did an amazing job steering a round the trees she was sure I was heading straight for a number of them. I told her I did not steer at all but had she not see that heavy metal half circle hoop at the front of the sled? - I figured out its purpose, whenever you hit something, such as a tree, it was the hoop that hit first and so would push the sled away from the ree or rock and make it look like you were steering to people behind you.

Careening along the trails it was not long before I took my first of many falls but tried to hold on to the sled. Now these dogs do not like to stop so they kept on running pulling the sled, and me face down in the snow, until we ran into the guide and she got the dogs to stop. After that whenever I fell I let go and yelled out something, maybe profanities, at the top of my voice to get the guides attention - she thanked me for this as she said some people do not say anything and she does not know there is a problem until the dogs and empty sled go flying past her! Now one other thing about falling off - the dogs do there 'business' whenever the urge takes them on the trail so there are piles of steaming dog poo every now and then (as an aside it is vaguely interesting watching a dog try to poo while its mates are pulling it along at breakneck speed) so I started having visions of falling head first into .... amazingly I fell a lot less once I had these visions.

Now we were told to dress warmly and in layers, it was actually the coldest day of the winter so far at minus 18. Not having any ski pants, thermal underwear or other suitable clothing and being a bolshie Bermudian I decided to wear a heavy pair of jeans with track pants underneath. When I put them on everything was nice and tight so I did not think I needed a belt - stupid me. Part way through the tour I realized that my pants were already half way down my ass and would soon fall down around my ankles and I thought this would make staying on the sled even more difficult! I also realized that this could lead to frost bite of the bum - and how was I to explain to the emergency room staff why my buns where frost bitten but none of my extremities where! So I tried to pull my pants up but having with my mouth and then try and pull my pants up - just picture me careening along on the sled one handed, with a mitten flying out the side of my mouth while I desperately try to pull my pants up. Thank goodness Eileen had not bought that action camera at Henry's that she was looking at as I am sure I would now be one of the most popular clips on You Tube! We had to stop every few minutes after that so that I could adjust my wardrobe.

We did eventually make it back all in one piece but as I noted at the beginning I was exhausted and could hardly walk. It was a great experience but I suggest that if you are not fit or are an old man (or both as in my case) you do the introductory tour first. And yes I will be back in the office on Monday - even if I am stiff and sore.

mailto:grfrith@csm.bm

4. Russian Club

James Brewer writes:

The Russian Club, a London network of marine and other insurance practitioners in its 18th year of existence, continues to raise its profile, sometimes in novel ways. In a break from the serious business, 37 members of the club on January 6--the Russian Orthodox Christmas Eve--met for their annual lunch at a Lebanese restaurant in the West End.

With the theme for the day All things Eastern and Oriental, participants donned suitable fancy dress, and as the lunch progressed enjoyed poetry readings from the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, a quiz with an eastern theme, songs, and a charity auction, which raised an impressive £1,800 for Friends of the Belarusian Children’s Hospice (UK), which deals with the ongoing human fall-out from the Chernobyl nuclear explosion.

This was the 12th such party organised by the flourishing Russian Club, and honorary secretary Vasilina Bindley (along with John Metcalfe of RFIB and Irina Ford of Generali the main organisers of this year’s event) said that London had welcomed distinguished visitors from the Russian market during 2011. George and Katerina Grishin, and Samson Akande, all of Oakeshott Insurance Consultants, lent much support to the organisers of the January 6 party.

The club encourages networking through informal get-togethers, notably during 2011 a ‘space party’ on the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s epoch-making orbit in outer space. Watch this space for news during the year of a Russian Club event to mark the 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow!

http://www.russiaclub.org

5. The Laboratory of Transport Theft

Courtesy of the Browser we came across an article in Outside by Patrick Symmes. The subject is bicycle theft in the US, which given the $1000 threshold in most states for classifying a theft as a felony, means that many of the 300 000 or so thefts of bikes in the US are classed as serious crimes. Many bikes, like containers sell for upwards of $1000 each. The author stages theft opportunities, installs hidden GPS devices and tests out locks. He loses 6 bikes altogether. The thieves are sometimes organised, more often they are junkies or street people. The technology works but as an anti-theft measure is ineffectual. All the same, insurers could with profit study the stealing of bikes in their markets. They will learn lessons they can apply to all manner of mobile property.

http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/biking/Who-Pinched-My-Ride.html?page=all

6. And Finally...

Thanks to Carolyn Williams of the Institute of Risk Management for asking

How do you get 80 ft of mast under a 65 ft bridge?

http://www.wimp.com/mastbridge/

P.S. Many thanks to Randy Cassingham and his JumboJoke.Com site for this patient feedback:-

A physician claimed that the following are actual comments made by his patients (predominately male) while he was performing their colonoscopies:

I usually don't do this on the first date.

"Take it easy, Doc. You're boldly going where no man has gone before!"

"Find Amelia Earhart yet?"

"Can you hear me now?"

"Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?"

"You know, in Arkansas, we're now legally married."

"Any sign of the trapped miners, Chief?"

"You put your left hand in, you take your left hand out, you put your left and in and you shake it all about...."

"Hey! Now I know how a Muppet feels!"

"If your hand doesn't fit, you must quit!"

"Hey Doc, let me know if you find my dignity."

"You used to be an executive at Enron, didn't you?"

And the best one of them all...

"Could you write a note for my wife saying that, in your considered medical opinion, my head is not up there?"

BOW WAVE is published each week to over 16 000 Readers in the transport,insurance,shipping and finance industries. It is free to Readers but you can support it as a going concern by subscribing as a business member to:-

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Thanks for reading BOW WAVE