Shipping woes & $$$Millions LOST

[Notehound7]

According to Bloomberg via American Shipper, approximately $401 Million in Porsches, Bentleys, Lamborghinis, Audis, and Volkswagens are a total loss aboard a flaming and now sunken ship.

Car carrier — and Bentleys, Porsches and Lamborghinis — sinks
Felicity Ace was en route from Germany to Rhode Island with estimated 4,000 vehicles when it caught fire

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/car-carrier-and-bentleys-p…

The car carrier Felicity Ace has sunk — and with it about half a billion dollars worth of luxury vehicles. “Initial reports from the local salvage team state that the vessel had sunk at around 9 a.m. local time (5 a.m. EST Tuesday) having suffered a list to starboard,” MOL Ship Management Singapore said in a statement… Although no cause of the fire has been disclosed, Reuters reported some of the vehicles on board were electric and equipped with lithium-ion batteries, which may have made extinguishing efforts more difficult.

Earlier versions of the story I read mentioned that Audi and VW cars were aboard along with the Porsches, Bentleys, and Lambos. However, the linked article only mentions the ultra-luxury brands.

I would love to own any of those lost cars. DW could use a replacement for her 2003 Mercedes and I would gladly trade my 2015 GLK for a Lamborghini, Porsche, or Bentley.

It will be sad if risks associated with shipping tightly compacted Lithium-Ion Batteries force manufacturers to ship the batteries separately. However, insurance underwriters may determine that transport of very high-end electric vehicles cannot be underwritten at standard commercial rates.

If I were the insurer paying for this $400 Million loss, I’d immediately raise rates and issue new underwriting guidelines, in order to avoid having to non-renew Volkswagen’s coverage or get out of the shipping insurance business altogether.

Already, shipping rates are astronomical. On a separate note, due to extraordinary risks (including sabotage and retaliation), it is virtually impossible for Russian companies to ship or to receive anything from or to anywhere at the moment.

Maersk, MSC and CMA CGM suspend Russian deliveries

Shipping lines say they are suspending most deliveries to Russia as West ramps up sanctions over Ukraine war.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/2/maersk-cma-cgm-and-m…

[DrBob2]

If I were the insurer paying for this $400 Million loss, I’d immediately raise rates and issue new underwriting guidelines, in order to avoid having to non-renew Volkswagen’s coverage…

FWIW, Volkswagen was self-insured, i.e., without insurance coverage.

www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/felicity-ace-fire-is-out-why-do…
Fighting a fire with water then means more heavy water sloshing around uncontrolled inside the hull, which can lead to instability if it collects in the wrong part of the ship. By Tuesday, fire crews on hand at the Felicity Ace were not spraying water into the hull but rather onto the outside of the hull to cool it enough so a fire was less likely to melt the steel and cause the ship to sink…

The cargo was self-insured, meaning VW would absorb the loss. That may seem like a lot to you or me, but VW sold nine million cars last year, so 4000 or so represents 0.04%. VW will survive.

DB2