What is the best marine cargo insurance coverage I can get?

Buying good marine cargo insurance coverage should be a top priority for the shipper of goods, since their cargo is exposed to the risk of being damaged, destroyed or pilfered while being transported over water. This is why we can easily say that the best marine cargo insurance is the one that provides the broadest coverage possible.

How Marine Cargo Insurance Works

Here are some of the basic characteristics of marine cargo insurance:

• Marine cargo insurance indemnifies the shipper of goods in the event that the latter are damaged or lost while being transported over water.
• There are two marine cargo insurance options: shippers can choose between a trip or voyage coverage and open-cargo coverage.
• The trip or voyage coverage of marine cargo insurance is written for a specific single shipment. In comparison, an open-cargo policy is for business people who do regular shipments.
• Open-cargo policies automatically cover the hauled goods any time a shipment is made. In this case, the only thing a shipper is required to do is notify the insurer of the shipments made. It is needless to say that an open-cargo policy is the ideal option for business people whose commercial operations involve regular cargo shipments.
• The Warehouse to Warehouse provision of a marine cargo insurance policy is very favorable since it combines ocean with inland marine insurance. The Warehouse to Warehouse clause provides coverage of the transported goods while being transported inland, such as from the dock to the warehouse, along with the protection of the goods while being hauled over sea.
• The most comprehensive form of coverage is the all-risk marine cargo insurance policy which protects the goods in transit against all fortuitous causes-of-loss unless the ones specifically excluded. Here are some of the marine cargo insurance exclusions:
  • Cargo that has been abandoned or rejected by customs;
  • Any damage or loss that exceeds the policy limits;
  • Loss resulting from faulty packing;
  • Damage arising out of any inherent faults of the goods, etc.

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