The technology now exists – so why so many tender losses? One of the questions raised at the Joint Hull Committee Yacht Subcommittee’s annual Yacht Forum at Lloyd’s, London, where the focus was superyacht tender towing, risk and loss prevention.
Claims figures certainly gave context to the discussion.
ABL Yachts’ reported just a small snapshot of one company’s data (in 5 years):
47 tender claims
Around US$13.5m in losses
An average claim of approximately US$287,000
Towing-related claims are the dominant loss driver
Flooding, capsizing while under tow and fire account for the largest losses. (AIS doesn’t help)
The majority could potentially have been prevented…..
The discussion explored the whole risk picture: crew training, towing equipment, SOPs, maintenance, tender design, weather, insurance, monitoring systems and early intervention.
Lack of uptake to technology comes down to inertia and confusion over what “monitoring” actually means. Historically, tender technology has often been associated with anti-theft tracking. But knowing where a tender is isn’t the same as knowing what is happening to it.
Advanced tow-protection systems can provide information about developing conditions onboard, giving crew an opportunity to respond before an incident becomes a major loss.
Insurance may also have an important part to play. Some insurers specify the functionality required from advanced monitoring, while others go further and name accepted systems, making the requirement much clearer for clients.
Many insurers will offer lower deductibles and extend their allowances for towing such as at night, away from shore and over 50nm.
A huge thank you to Emily Grew for organising the forum and Matt Halpin for moderating the discussion, the yacht and hull insurance community and to the panel:
Dr. Dan Rogers Dan Rogers — Founder & CTO, Yacht Trace
Paul Saunders — Head of Yachts & Principal Surveyor, ABL Yachts
Dale Rogers — COO, Tow Pro
Adam Jackson — Managing Director & Principal Surveyor, Assure Maritime
Captain Billy Stevens — Superyacht Captain, MCA Master 3,000 GT
👉 I’ve put together the attached article with the claims data and some of the key points raised during the forum.
➡️ Welcome to share and repost ⏩ – it is a very comprehensive guide to what was discussed and the knowledge given by the expert panel.
▶️ A topic where there needs to be greater awareness across the whole industry.
💡 Interestingly beyond towing. A number of Yacht Trace clients just want to know the health and status of their tenders and Jet Skis in order to prevent loss even when not towing.
