Looking out for our Members
The Thomas Miller Japan P&I team has authored a selection of P&I focused articles covering a range of current issues which are impacting the Japanese regions.
If you would like to know more about any of the articles, or indeed a topic which has not been touched upon here, please don’t hesitate to make contact. You can find a full contact list for all our professionals in our Tokyo and Imabari offices.
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On 26 June 2023, Bangladesh & Liberia ratified IMO's Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships ("HKC")
The Electronic Trade Documents Bill
02/06/2023
We are living in a digital age where information can be transmitted instantaneously and yet progress towards a fully digitalised international trade remains slow
Crew Health Advice: Limiting hearing loss
04/05/2023
Hearing defects have consistently featured as a cause of PEME failures, and currently account for 11% of the Club's PEME unfitness statistics
The region comprising Latin America and the Caribbean is a busy one for the UK P&I Club. Some prominent Members have a large number of tons entered with the Club and have this region as their principal place of business. Moreover, many of the Club’s entered ships frequently call at Latin American and Caribbean ports regardless of where the Member is based, which can undoubtedly be anywhere in the world.
Loading grain cargo in the Pacific Northwest
03/05/2023
Loading grains in the Pacific Northwest can be a real test of patience. For shipowners not familiar with the Pacific Northwest, where it rains approximately 150 to 180 days per year, with rainfall totals averaging 40 inches per year, it is important to maximise loading during periods of light rain and to prevent vessel delays while avoiding moisture damage to the cargo during periods of moderate to heavy rain.
Founded in 1543, Santos has been long known as a port city – first through the export of coffee and then other commodities. Santos was significantly modernised and expanded in the 1990s to incorporate new technologies, operating with specialised terminals for containers, general cargo, and dry and liquid bulk, and it is responsible for almost 27% of the country’s trade. Santos is considered the largest port in Latin America, with its docks being 25 km long and able to accommodate about 50 ships at a time.
With cargo’s newfound ability to go well beyond the vessel and even the port, container lines face new liabilities. The intermodal capability means that containers transit on public highways and railroads, areas traditionally excluded from P&I cover. This new type of risk has given rise to the Through Transport Club (‘TT Club’), a specialised transport and logistics mutual covering risks complementing P&I cover. Both covers dovetail with one another through corresponding cover and exclusions during ocean transit.
A Solution to Pollution
03/05/2023
An oil spill is an ‘all hands-on deck!’ moment, inviting everyone from insurers, charterers, owners, the U.S. Coast Guard, local and state authorities, property, and ecological interests, and more to get involved. Tying all these parties together is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (‘OPA’).