Marine Insurance Report Warns of Ro-Ro Risk
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Felicity Ace seen burning in the Atlantic Ocean off the Azores Islands. Picture was released Friday, February 18, 2022 by the Portuguese Navy.
Photo courtesy Portuguese Navy
Allianz SE says car-shipping incidents are now a major cause of loss for the insurance industry after a cargo ship with about 4,000 Volkswagen AG vehicles caught fire and sank in the Atlantic two months ago.
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The Felicity Ace, transporting Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini and other VW Group cars, sank off the coast of Portugal’s Azores after being battered by waves and leaning 45 degrees to its starboard side, the ship’s operator said at the time.
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Research points to additional fire risks from electric vehicles, Allianz said, as tests have shown that ship water sprinkler systems alone are not effective at extinguishing an EV fire.
Vehicle vessel incidents according to the Allianz report:
• the Hoegh Osaka ran aground in 2015 on its way from Southampton to Bremerhaven carrying more than 1,400 high-end cars.
• the Modern Express developed a list in the Bay of Biscay in 2016, while carrying trucks and logs.
• †he Honor suffered a fire in 2017, which led to damage to its cargo of about 5,000 vehicles.
• †he Grande America suffered a fire and subsequently sank in 2019. The ship was carrying 2,000 cars.
• †he Sincerity Ace caught fire in the Pacific on New Year’s Eve, 2018, with more than 3,500 cars onboard.
• the Diamond Highway had to be abandoned in the South China Sea in 2019, due to fire, while carrying thousands of cars.
• the Golden Ray capsized just outside the U.S. port of Brunswick in 2019 with over 4,000 cars on board.
• the Höegh Xiamen caught fire in 2020 in Jacksonville, Florida, resulting in the loss of its cargo of about 2,400 used vehicles.
• the car carrier Al Salmy 6 capsized and sank in the Persian Gulf in rough seas in March 2022.