Seems some insurance companies want to create their own navy to protect insured ships against Somali pirates. And what will likely stop this effort? The market? Nope. Government, of course.
Note: OK. I realize this may just be a ploy to push the various states to intervene more often and with greater force. But it does show that private entities, and even the press in this instance, recognize government regulations as roadblocks to security and safety.
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there’s a typo on the link text… it appears that “won” should be “own”.
Oops. Got it. Thanks.
Interesting news.
I didn’t see bans or regulations being mentioned in the article.
Time for modernized Letter of Marque?
One wonders how necessary this would be if ship crews were allowed to be armed. Given the ban on arming crews, how DOES one go about building a private navy without running afoul of stupid government laws? On the other hand, if it’s good for the military-industrial complex….
Outside of government-controlled waters, those darned military ships are likely to do almost anything against wayward private ships that don’t toe the line. After all, who’s going to say no to the Navy when you’re in the ocean in the middle of nowhere?
Heh. Imagine that–a “michael”-type criticism directed against the military.
But seriously, I can see insurance companies doing a lot more than they do now, in terms of certification, safety, and protection, if they aren’t hamstrung by government rules and regulations.
As some of you may have heard, there were a series of wildfires outside of Boulder, Colorado a few weeks ago. A local Fox affiliate ran a story after the fires were contained about how a private fire brigade (13 wildfire trained specialists) was given access to the fire zone after the area was evacuated. An insurance company, Chubb Inc (?), had policies on several (perhaps more, the story is thin on details) houses in the burn zone. Their fire brigade was sent to the properties to spray them down with a fire suppressing gel, deploying a system of water sprayers & clear brush away from homes. The story mentions they lost three of their covered properties; no mention of the total number of policies — only that “at least 10″ homes were saved. Finally, the Boulder Camera mentioned that this was the first time in the history of Colorado wildfires that a private brigade worked alongside the county and state brigades.
I would submit that this is similar to the situation for shipping companies operating in Somali waters. There is a market for all manner of services traditionally provided by governments — shipping lane protection and wildfire fighting.
A quote from an uninsured (not insured by Chubb) I think explains why other insurance companies have not widely offered these polices:
“Janice Wheeler, an Allstate Corp. client whose home was destroyed by the fire, said Chubb’s wildfire protection plan sounded good, but she had reservations.
“When you don’t have that policy and someone else does, it sets up a have and have-nots kind of feeling,”"
Insurer sent private firefighters to Colo. blaze — http://www.wtop.com/?nid=111&sid=2058570
Fire crews for hire: Added protection during Fourmile blaze came at a price
Read more: Fire crews for hire: Added protection during Fourmile blaze came at a price – Boulder Daily Camera http://www.dailycamera.com/fourmile-canyon-fire/ci_16129301#ixzz112M6HPKX
DailyCamera.com — http://www.dailycamera.com/fourmile-canyon-fire/ci_16129301
There is a market for all manner of services traditionally provided by governments — shipping lane protection and wildfire fighting.
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