Cover for the schedule, the passengers, and everything in between.
Ferry operators sit at the intersection of every marine risk profile at once: passenger liability, vehicle deck exposure, port state compliance, tight schedules, and a mass-casualty scenario that never leaves the risk register. Standard commercial marine cover was not written for the operational reality of ferry services. We build programmes addressing hull, P&I, passenger claims, applicable financial responsibility requirements, and war and cyber exclusions on international routes. USCG Subchapters T, K and H set construction, inspection and manning standards for passenger vessels; they do not set insurance requirements. The federal insurance requirement comes from the Federal Maritime Commission: vessels with 50 or more passenger berths embarking passengers at US ports must show financial responsibility for death or injury and for non-performance.
Ferry insurance combines hull & machinery cover for the vessel, protection & indemnity (P&I) for passenger and third-party liability, and specialised extensions for vehicle deck exposure, mass casualty scenarios, and route-specific regulatory compliance. USCG Subchapters T, K and H set construction, inspection and manning standards for passenger vessels; they do not set insurance requirements. The federal insurance requirement comes from the Federal Maritime Commission: vessels with 50 or more passenger berths embarking passengers at US ports must show financial responsibility for death or injury and for non-performance.
A single ferry incident can produce more passenger claims in one afternoon than a commercial fleet sees in a year. Programme structure has to account for the aggregation risk that standard hull and P&I cover was never built to hold.
Recent claim: Bow-door failure on a Ro-Pax route — 340 passenger claims, mass-notification protocol activated. P&I aggregate limit stress-tested; no cover shortfall.
Modern ferries carry hundreds of vehicles — including electric vehicles with lithium batteries that current suppression systems weren't designed for. Underwriters are tightening terms fast; the programmes we place stay ahead of the wording changes.
Recent claim: EV thermal runaway in a vehicle deck, contained by crew before spread. Hull damage limited; wording review triggered mid-term restructuring across the fleet.
IMO SOLAS, the MCA Passenger Ship Code and EU flag state requirements differ by route. We distinguish vessel safety standards from applicable insurance and financial responsibility requirements. USCG Subchapters T, K and H set construction, inspection and manning standards for passenger vessels; they do not set insurance requirements. The federal insurance requirement comes from the Federal Maritime Commission: vessels with 50 or more passenger berths embarking passengers at US ports must show financial responsibility for death or injury and for non-performance.
Case: EU-flagged Ro-Pax refused port entry pending updated P&I certificate. New endorsement issued within 4 hours; sailing schedule held.
Ferries make money on the timetable. Any covered event — mechanical, weather, dispute — that idles a route eats into the season's revenue immediately. BI cover has to reflect the actual timetable, not an annualised average.
Recent claim: Main engine failure during peak Aegean season — 11-day repair window. BI cover paid daily revenue at peak-season rate, not annualised.
Physical loss or damage on an agreed-value basis, including the engineering-critical systems that ferries depend on — main engines, thrusters, ramps, bow doors, watertight closures.
International Group P&I clubs apply fixed limits for passenger claims (US$2 billion for passengers, US$3 billion for passengers and seamen combined, per ship per event). We check those limits against peak loading, Athens Convention and EU Passenger Liability Regulation requirements, and arrange excess cover where needed.
Athens Convention limits and PLR (Passenger Liability Regulation) compliance for EU routes remain part of the review. USCG Subchapters T, K and H set construction, inspection and manning standards for passenger vessels; they do not set insurance requirements. The federal insurance requirement comes from the Federal Maritime Commission: vessels with 50 or more passenger berths embarking passengers at US ports must show financial responsibility for death or injury and for non-performance.
Loss of income cover indexed to your actual timetable and route revenue — reflecting seasonal peaks, not annualised averages.
A Mediterranean ferry operator running four Ro-Pax vessels on peak-season routes came to us mid-year with a programme that had not been re-broked in three years. Our review identified passenger liability aggregation exposure requiring a check against the fixed club limits and vehicle deck cover written before EV traffic became material. We restructured the programme across all four hulls inside five weeks, before season peak. International Group P&I clubs apply fixed limits for passenger claims (US$2 billion for passengers, US$3 billion for passengers and seamen combined, per ship per event). We check those limits against peak loading, Athens Convention and EU Passenger Liability Regulation requirements, and arrange excess cover where needed. Six months later a bow-door incident produced 340 passenger claims. The reviewed cover responded without uncovered exposure.
The old programme was a snapshot from three years ago. SRMG's audit was the first time anyone had actually looked at the aggregation risk on our peak-season loading. When the incident happened, we had the cover we needed — not the cover we'd assumed we had.
Complimentary ferry programme review — passenger aggregation stress-test, vehicle deck cover audit, regulatory compliance check. No obligation.
Last reviewed: August 2026
