About Us

Welcome to Inserve Risk Engineering Ltd

Since our inception in 2003 Inserve have been 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 Risk Engineering Ltd

We are seafarers at heart. We have all worked at sea for 20 years in senior positions. We have improved on this with further formal education and training in engineering and ship design for example. Most importantly we have a grounding in insurance claims and claims handling and we know how casualties occur and how the policies of insurance respond.

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

In our view, losses rarely result solely from the condition of a vessel. Yes, there can be isolated structural failures losses are more often connected to the way in which the vessel is manned, operated, managed and maintained.

It was on this basis that the Technical Appraisal was formed. The Technical Appraisal is a loss prevention exercise intended for small and medium sized fleets. It looks as the way in which the vessels are managed, operated, manned and maintained. It combines a review of the shore based management with surveys of some of the fleet. It ensures that what the management are trying to achieve 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 improving the loss record.

For smaller companies we might look at just one or two vessels using the Risk Assessment Survey format.

For larger fleets we have a 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 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, increasing knowledge and awareness of those on board and ashore, speaks for itself.

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. The “Inserve treatment” as some prefer to call it.

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.

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. We possibly diverge somewhat from these wordings because we continue to be risk based in our approach.

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. Which indeed is the purpose of the risk based exercise, there is no point spending a lot of time looking at structural condition unless the vessel is of a nature whereby there is a real risk of structural failure.

Machinery reliability is not improving in our 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 is 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.

Our Services

We provide services to both public and private sector entities around the world.
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Owners / Managers

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

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

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

Offices in London and Philippines

Simon Groves
London
Simon Groves is based in our London office. He has a lot of experience over many years working within the London marine insurance industry, firstly as a technical consultant for Richards Hogg average adjusters and then developing a technical services division within Charles Taylor – managers of the Standard P&I Club. With Inserve, he specializes in risk based surveys. Simon studied engineering and ship design to become a Chartered Engineer and went on to develop a particular interest in the field of marine machinery reliability. He has led a number of high profile loss prevention projects which have resulted in significant reductions in breakdowns, casualties and claims. Tel: +44 7766 750450
Richard Postles
London
Richard Postles brings a wealth of experience from his sea going career with blue chip shipping companies such as Shell, P&O and China Navigation where he sailed as chief engineer. Richard spent three years as chief engineer with the Mercyships organisation, a thoroughly rewarding and satisfying period of his life. Richard is based in our London office and he brings valuable experience to the team, in the form of up to date ship management practices, ship operations, planned maintenance systems and rules and regulations. Tel: +44 7890 379209
Edmund Concepcion
Philippines
Edmund Concepcion is a well experienced master mariner. He sailed on a variety of ship types, such as oil tankers, OBO, car carriers and cement carriers. He also has five years experience as a master mariner with one of the leading shipping companies in Greece and Japan. When he retired sailing in 2011, he worked in one of the prestigious manning agencies in Manila as a training coordinator for almost two years. Edmund is now based in the Philippines and he is the responsible to carry out surveys there as well as in other Asian countries. Tel: +63 917 845 2405