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Superstorm Sandy wiped out 2012 U.S. marine premiums: IUMI

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Superstorm Sandy wiped out 2012 U.S. marine premiums: IUMI

Superstorm Sandy's estimated $2.5 billion to $3 billion cost to the global marine market effectively wipes out the entire U.S. marine premiums for 2012, the International Union of Marine Insurance said.

In a statement Wednesday, the Hamburg, Germany-based organization said its annual spring statistics, which cover the cargo, ocean hull and offshore energy sectors, “remain a litmus test for the marine insurance report and the impact of Sandy will define 2012 in the eyes of the underwriters.”

The statement said in the ocean hull class, the loss of the Costa Concordia “was the biggest event in a year where the level of losses remained at concerning levels.”

“Some severe major losses hit several lines of marine insurance business in 2012,” IUMI President Ole Wikborg said in a statement. “Although the claim frequency and cost are beyond our control, we're going to do our part to turn it for the better in 2013. Hence we've chosen for IUMI's 2013 conference in London in September the common theme 'Building Resilience: Defining For a Sustainable Future.'”

Other trends highlighted by the statistics include:

• The financial markets rally is creating a trade upturn, with a positive impact on the cargo market.

• While the number of total hull losses increased marginally in 2012, the level of tonnage fell.

• Weather continues to be a major cause of the total hull losses, accounting for half of the vessels lost between 2009 and 2012.

• The number of vessels scrapped in 2012 was at an all-time high.

• The size of the world drill rig fleet increased 3% from the previous year, to 833 active units in 2012.

The statistics and analysis are available here.