Maritime Cyber Insurance Partnership launched

(Posted on 21/07/19)

Leading marine underwriter Lampe & Schwartze has joined the advisory board of the Maritime Cyber Emergency Response Team (MCERT). The announcement took place at a reception for insurance brokers and vessel operators hosted by Lampe & Schwartze at the Hafen Club in Hamburg. Guest speakers included Norton Rose Fulbright, Verein Hanseatischer Transportversicherer (VHT), and from the MCERT, Wärtsilä and Templar Executives.

The MCERT partnership underpins the formal launch of Lampe & Schwartze Marine Unit’s (L&S MU) new Ship Owner’s Marine Cyber Cover (SOMCC) covering exclusion Clause 380, and provides the basis for a joint approach to protect the maritime industry, especially shipowners, from cyber-attacks. MCERT is one of the first companies providing a trusted platform for industry wide collaboration on cyber incident reporting and response and sharing of threat intel, especially for the maritime sector.

‘We are delighted to welcome Lampe & Schwartze onto our Advisory Board. This is the culmination of months working together to incorporate MCERT as an integral part of the process for the cyber cover eligibility,’ said Andrew Fitzmaurice, CEO at Templar Executives.

Mark Milford, VP Cyber Security at Wärtsilä added, ‘This exciting partnership with Lampe & Schwartze brings a new dimension and is a great example of how the MCERT is enabling collaboration and adopting solutions by leading industry players for the industry.’

Anu Khurmi who has been leading the MCERT collaboration with Lampe and Schwartze commented, ‘‘At a time when digitisation and automation are shaping the future of the maritime industry, the spectre of cyber attacks is becoming ever more prominent. Marine insurance has a critical role in facilitating and safeguarding international maritime trade especially if it enables best practices in cyber hygiene and resilience throughout the entire ecosystem. Lampe & Schwartze are leading experts in complex transport and maritime risks, providing highly specialised insurance concepts such as their ground-breaking SOMCC offering’.

‘Our Ship Owner’s Marine Cyber Cover provides certainty in scope of insurance cover and is a standalone insurance policy covering the exclusions of the clause 380 in hull & machinery policies. Our exciting partnership with MCERT will provide international cyber incident reporting and response and ensure due diligence on vessel operators taking out the SOMCC. In addition, the MCERT has a key role in providing daily alerts and global threat intel which will further help in loss prevention and cyber risk mitigations.’ stated Hans-Christoph Enge, Managing Partner of L&S MU.

In case of a claim or incident, a co-operation between the MCERT and Verein Hanseatischer Transportversicherer (VHT), the tried and tested Hull & Machinery Claims Organization of the German Market, will guarantee a combination of technical, nautical and cyber security know-how thus giving a holistic 24/7 response line. The insurance capacity for the cover is provided by renowned German direct insurer and reinsurers.