Discover the critical steps you should know to mitigate loss to mechanical, electrical and electronic equipment directly following a marine incident
When you are faced with a catastrophic loss onboard or ashore causing damage from fire, flooding, extreme weather, chemicals and alike, your insured has a critical and limited time in which to take remedial steps to minimise damage to mechanical, electrical and electronic equipment/systems. Immediately post-incident is a challenging time for insurers as there is pressure for decisions to be made quickly and the correct recommendations need to be issued to support the insured and protect the underwriter’s interests.
If the correct protocols are not followed in this initial stage of the claims process the damage caused to equipment can easily escalate to a point where it needs to be replaced, increasing the claim quantum. Your insured should of course be making all reasonable efforts to mitigate their loss, but what defines reasonable? And without practical recommendations and stringent oversight from the insurers, it can be difficult to determine whether reasonable steps were taken and distinguishing from the resultant sub sequential damage.
We will explore this challenge together, looking at the post-incident environment and timeline to understand the science behind what causes damage to escalate and the practical engineering steps that need to be taken to prevent it. We will examine the reinstatement of equipment and the defining contamination levels that govern the repairability and reliability in service, together with the challenge that can be faced with the original equipment manufacturer. Breaking down the claims process we will look at the challenges you typically face and discuss how these may be overcome to mitigate the loss, while supporting your insured and maintaining positive relations with all parties concerned