Every crisis is an opportunity for somebody - and it has not taken long for shipping fraudsters to cash in on the coronavirus.

UK insurer the International Transport Intermediaries Club (ITCI) has warned owners over dodgy invoices being sent for medical testing services related to the outbreak.

ITIC said it had been receiving an increasing number of reports of fraudulent bills issued.

"ITIC has noted that fraudulent invoices often contain errors which can be easily detected by those responsible for settling disbursement accounts," it added.

"For example, a recent case involved an invoice where the vessel was listed with an incorrect flag. By simply checking with the vessel’s master it was quickly confirmed that the invoice was fraudulent."

The insurer is strongly urging members and others responsible for settling accounts – and in particular ship managers - to be vigilant and to check all invoices in relation to coronavirus testing.

Tests widely adopted

For the shipping industry, the impact of the coronavirus is still largely unknown, but a number of countries, ports and organisations have implemented preventative measures to minimise the impact of the outbreak, ITIC said.

"With more than 89,000 people infected worldwide, and sadly more than 3,000 people losing their life to the virus, providing medical tests to seafarers is one measure that is being widely adopted by owners and managers."

The virus is not only proving very destructive in terms of market disruption, but also in terms of working practices in shipping.

TradeWinds reported on Monday that the 20th annual Transpacific Maritime (TPM) conference was cancelled over the weekend due to fears over the spread of coronavirus, one of a series of events to bite the dust worldwide.

The event, which had been scheduled to be held in Long Beach on 1 to 4 March, marks the biggest cancellation of an international shipping event outside of Asia due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

And staff at Chinese charterer Unipec's London office were told to work from home on Monday.

This followed a lock-down of Chevron's London headquarters last week after an employee was tested for coronavirus.