Safety and maritime transport

Maritime safety in 2012

The year 2012 was marked by an increase in the number of maritime accidents which amount to losses of 106 vessels of 100 gross tons against 91 in 2011. The 2012 figures are up by 16% compared to 2011 and down by 27% compared to the average value of the last ten years (146 accidents).

«Costa Concordia» shipwreck © Rvongher, CC BY 3.0

Two major catastrophes were reported in 2012: the sinking of the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia, which claimed the lives of 32 passengers, and the loss of the ferry Rabaul Queen off Papua New Guinea, which has claimed the lives of 110 passengers out of 350 ones.

The geographical distribution of the loss experience shows a concentration of losses in some regions of the world. The high risk area includes South China and Southeast Asia where accidents are twice as frequent. In 2012, 30 ship losses have been reported in this area, compared to 15 in the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea areas, whereas 10 accidents have been reported in the region that includes Japan, Korea and North China.

The analysis of the main causes of catastrophes has revealed the high frequency of foundering which accounts for 49.1% of the accidents compared to 21.7% for wrecking / running and 10.4% for fire and explosion.

Total losses per type of accident in 2012

* Statistics from 25 November 2011 to 25 November 2012

Total losses per type of accident in 2012

Maritime safety : A toll of 100 years of navigation

Maritime transport allows the daily handling of nearly 25 million tons of cargo and 55 000 passengers. It is generally considered to be one of the safest means of transport for passengers, crew, cargo and hull.

In a century, maritime traffic has increased 23 fold for freight and 2.5 times for passengers, while world trade has tripled since 1970 to over 8.4 billion tons of cargo per year. The world fleet has also tripled, rising from 30 058 vessels in 1910 to 104 305 vessels in early 2012.

This increase in traffic and maritime fleet has been coupled with a decrease in the loss experience. Consequently, from one damaged ship out of 100 in 1912, the market went down to 1 damaged ship out of 670 in 2009 and then down to 1 out of 984 in 2012.

Total losses in % of the world fleet: 1910-2012

Maritime safety: New challenges

Despite progress in the shipping safety, the sector has to address new challenges:

• The race for gigantic cruise and container ships has eventually increased the risk: structural integrity of the hull, the importance of capital employed, ...
• The high exposure to losses is a concern to insurers. The value of products shipped and the amounts of compensation could be very high in the event of shipwreck.
• The evacuation of passengers (between 6000 and 8000 for cruise ships) and cargo shipped (up to 15 000 containers per ship) in the event of damage in high seas raises countless security issues.
• Pressure on costs, especially in the competitive sectors of bulk cargo and tankers has prompted owners to cut security expenditure, with crew, risk management and maintenance undergoing most pressure.

Other constraints are reported such as:

• Maritime piracy
• Language barriers for staff on board
• Training of crews
• Navigating through new sea routes such as the Arctic and Polar waters
• The lack of coordination between the different regulations
• The risk of pollution

Causes of total losses: 2007-2012

Source: a survey of Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty entitled «Safety & Shipping 1912-2012: from Titanic to Costa Concordia».