The question of whether the International Group should broaden its horizons from being the organisation that holds the protection-and-indemnity cartel together was on the agenda at the Piraeus Marine Club’s annual conference.
The P&I clubs are wealthy organisations, so should they take on a greater role in representing shipowners and the shipping industry on the international stage?
The London-headquartered International Group is already involved in representation and lobbying but keeps its focus on activities relevant to the insurance operations of the clubs as well as running the collective claims pool and coordinating the buying of the huge reinsurance programme that stands behind the billions of dollars of cover on offer.
UK Club syndicate manager Marc Jackson noted there were already organisations ranging from Intercargo, Intertanko, Bimco and the International Chamber of Shipping to the European Community Shipowners' Association, so the International Group should not muddy the waters.
The International Group has 40 sub-committees and working groups looking at issues from loss prevention to bills of lading, maritime security, sanctions, personal injury, regulatory affairs and salvage.
So Jackson declared that it should stick to liaising with organisations such as the IMO, the International Oil Pollution Compensation (IOPC) Funds and national administrations on matters relevant to insurance liabilities.
And there were plenty of these, such as the Maritime Labour Convention, Filipino crew claims and problems with ore cargo liquefaction.
Jackson argued specialism had its benefits, with the idea that the International Group should become active outside the insurance area attracting little or no support at the conference.
“If anybody’s tried to put up a bank guarantee in Djibouti, they will understand how important a club letter of guarantee can be,” he said.
