Marine cargo insurance is a class of property insurance that insures cargo while in transit against loss or damage arising from perils associated with the navigation of the sea or air and subsequent land and inland waterways. Typical ‘Maritime perils’ are perils of the sea (sinking, stranding, collision etc), fire, war perils, pirates, thieves, capture, jettison and washing overboard and ‘…any other perils either of a like kind or which may be designated by the policy.’ The latter allows insurers to include at their discretion in their policies other risks, for example risks appropriate to other means of transport, like crashing, derailment and overturning.
Everyone who has an insurable interest can insure their interest under a marine policy. A person is ‘interested’ where he stands in any legal or equitable relation to the adventure in consequence of which he may benefit by the safe arrival of the property or be prejudiced by its loss. When an exporter sells goods overseas he has the option of either selling the goods on terms that leave the insurance to be arranged by him or his buyer, or he can arrange an insurance that covers the entire voyage but the benefit of which passes from him to his buyer when the insurable interest passes from one to the other.
