Claims teams in marine insurance depend on two main factors: damage investigations and decisions regarding claim approval or denial. In the pre-2022 environment, these primarily related to determining the status of the incident, confirming that the damage was covered by insurance, and processing claims. However, by 2026, this process has changed significantly.
New Challenges in Damage Investigations
Damage investigations increasingly begin with the question of what happened during a specific period. AIS records from that period may not reliably answer this question. Vessels operating in areas affected by GPS disruptions may send incorrect coordinates instead of their actual position, and vessels in dark conditions send no information at all. Therefore, reconstructing the actual journey of the vessel has become a critical analytical task for claims teams before a decision on claim approval or denial can be made.
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The Status of the Strait of Hormuz and Its Impact on Claims
The operational environment resulting from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in early 2026 has created specific scenarios for claims. Following the onset of conflict with Iran on February 28, 2026, and the Epic Fury operation on the same day, vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz significantly decreased. In February, approximately 3,750 visible AIS crossings were recorded, but this number dropped to 450 in March. Even after a slight recovery, traffic in June remained about 83% lower than pre-conflict levels.
Claims teams are facing several types of specific claims in this situation, including claims for total loss of property and claims for non-employment. Many vessels were unable to complete their journeys during this period, leading to claims for non-employment damages. Additionally, vessels passing through the conflict zones of the Strait of Hormuz are increasingly operating with AIS turned off, which raises the need to reconstruct journeys during dark periods.
Ultimately, the legal landscape is also changing. The UK Court of Appeal ruling in the case of Tonzip Maritime (Singapore) Pte Ltd v 2 Rivers Pte Ltd on May 22, 2026, clarified how courts handle disputed contractual conditions and established that the threshold for invoking sanction conditions is a reasonable judgment of the actual risk of sanctions.
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