Welcome to Inserve Risk Engineering Ltd

Since our inception in 2003 Inserve have led the way with loss prevention in the marine insurance industry. Prior to that the industry relied upon condition surveys as a means of assessing the quality of ships and in some areas still does. At Inserve we use a risk based approach not condition based. We understand how breakdowns, claims and casualties occur. We know how to prevent them.

Simon Groves

CEO & Founder of Inserve
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Ships surveyed in last 12 months

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Companies assisted in last 12 months

The Beginning

We are seafarers at heart and we have all worked at sea for many years in senior positions. We have improved on this with further formal education and training in engineering, ship design, marine transportation etc. Importantly we have a grounding in insurance claims and claims handling, we know how casualties occur and how the policies of insurance respond.

We understand shipping and marine insurance and we know that casualties rarely arise from a single event. They generally start small and develop due to various contributory factors.

Losses rarely result from the condition of a vessel. There can be isolated structural failures but losses more often arise from the way in which a vessel is manned, operated, managed and maintained.

It was on this basis that the Technical Appraisal was created. The Technical Appraisal is a loss prevention exercise intended for small and medium sized fleets. It looks at the way in which the vessels are managed, operated, manned and maintained. It combines a review of the shore based management with surveys of a representative sample of the fleet. It looks at what the management are trying to achieve and whether this is reflected on board. It remains one of our most popular surveys and it has a proven track record in reducing losses, increasing reliability and performance.

For surveys of a single vessel we have a Risk Assessment Survey which looks mostly at the vessel and does not consider the management in such detail.

For the larger fleets we have the Loss Prevention Study which takes the exercise to the next level. We spend a lot more time with the management looking at the shore based activities in more detail and we spend more time on the vessels, often sailing on board.

Over the last 15 years we have had the pleasure of working with some impressive clients and we are pleased to say that our track record of reducing losses by improving management supervision, increasing machinery reliability and increasing knowledge and awareness of those on board and ashore, speaks for itself.

The Present

There are three ways in which we currently work:

  • Shipowners will approach us outside of their insurance programme to assist them in their efforts to improve safety, reliability and performance throughout the fleet.
  • Insurance brokers will approach us as part of their client’s fleet insurance programme where they feel their client would benefit from some external comments and advice from an independent source.
  • Insurers will ask us to survey ships or visit a shipping company as part of their policy conditions where they feel some improvements can be made.

In each case the process is similar. We see what has happened in the past, we look at the current situation with the fleet and we anticipate the improvements that can be made in the future.

We are not checklist surveyors. We start each job with a blank sheet of paper. Each job is different and we build the risk profile as we go along. Our risk reduction recommendations are always made with some degree of common sense and cost effectiveness in mind.

The Future

Hull and machinery insurers are relying on some degree of standardisation when it comes to future surveys, basing their requirements on the Joint Hull Committee A, B, C and D survey wordings. This is fine and we are happy to meet their needs. While meeting the A, B, C and D requirements we possibly have a slightly different approach because we prefer to be risk based and not condition based.

For hull and machinery insurers, crankshafts and fires remain the highest areas of risk in terms of frequency of loss and quantum. We take the view that all such incidents can be prevented and we spend a lot of time concentrating on these areas. This is the purpose of a risk based exercise, there is no point spending a lot of time looking at structural condition for example unless the vessel is of a nature whereby there is a real risk of structural failure.

Machinery reliability is not improving in the shipping industry and we need to be alert to this. Higher combustion loads, smaller engines, greater power to weight ratios all combine to have an effect on reliability. The managers and crew need to be particularly alert to certain key areas.

Fires are not going away either. Improved fire fighting resources are a good thing but more needs to be done with fire prevention, particularly flammable liquids reaching hot surfaces, electrical issues, fires while under repair etc.

In the future the drive for better emissions and fuel efficiency will present their own risks, particularly in the presence of deteriorating fuel quality.

Our Services

We provide services to both public and private sector entities around the world.
Learn More
01

Owners / Managers

If you have reliability issues with your fleet or certain vessels we can help. ...
02

Underwriters

If you have an assured who needs assistance to improve the loss record, or ...
03

Brokers

If you have a client with an interesting loss record and you are anticipating ...

Latest Work

Breakdown of 2022 survey work:

2022 saw a return to pre pandemic levels, thanks to everybody’s support. As travel restrictions eased, we were able to travel once again. In 2022 the number of online surveys dropped and in terms of the JH C survey, the management office review, we carried out just five of these online.

On the other hand we managed to visit 17 shipping companies of one kind or another, all with loss prevention in mind. We travelled extensively throughout South America, Europe and Asia.

In terms of the number of vessel surveys, we surveyed 26 fishing vessels, 38 ferries, 27 yachts, 30 other vessels of various types and one case of newbuild supervision.

It has been a busy 2022 and we are grateful for the support from insurers, brokers and the clients. Let’s hope 2023 continues in the same way.

Latest News

Posted By Simon Groves

January 2023

2022 saw a return to pre pandemic levels, thanks to everybody’s support. As travel restrictions eased, ...
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Posted By Simon Groves

February 2022

After a difficult year in 2021, which resulted in 50% reduction of survey activity, we are ...
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Posted By admin

January 2021

During 2020 we experienced a big reduction in our survey activities due to travel restrictions. Our ...
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