North P&I Club Targets Fishing Vessels in its Latest Safety Poster Campaign

The 170 million GT, ‘A’ rated North P&I Club has launched a new safety poster campaign to help reduce the unnecessarily high number of personal injury accidents on fishing vessels.

Since its merger with Sunderland Marine in February 2014, North has become one of the world’s leading liability insurers in the fishing industry. Founded in 1882, Sunderland Marine insures fishing vessels, small craft, and aquaculture risks, with over 29, 000 policies in 50 countries.

According to loss prevention executive Alvin Forster, ‘North has provided liability insurance cover to fishing vessel owners in the USA for many years. Following our recent merger with Sunderland Marine, the loss prevention department’s involvement in the fishing industry has increased, particularly with regard to crew safety.’

In common with North’s other poster series, the new ‘Safe Home’ posters compare and contrast good and bad practice on board fishing vessels using coloured illustrations. The posters are freely available to download and print from the Club’s website at www.nepia.com. 

Alvin Forster further commented, ‘Following a review of crew claims in the fishing sector, we identified a number of common issues that have caused, or contributed to, incidents and injuries. Heavy seas, a fast-paced working environment and compact working areas can present various hazards when working on or below deck on fishing vessels.

‘The key message of the posters is safe working in a safe working environment, with particular focus on the importance of keeping the vessel tidy, keeping working areas and walkways clear and always being prepared for heavy weather. We advise crew members to ‘keep one hand for yourself and one for the boat’ as well as to wear the correct personal protective equipment for the job and conditions.’

The first three posters in the series are entitled, Safety…All at Sea?, which reviews the general hazards of working on deck; No Messin’ When Processin’, which covers the specific hazards encountered below deck in processing areas; and Keep Trawlin’ – Not Fallin’, which looks at typical slip, trip and fall hazards on a fishing vessel.

ENDS  

For further information contact: Alvin Forster +44 191 232 5221

Notes to Editors

• North’s ‘Safe Home’ posters, together with all its other poster series, are freely available on North’s website at /publications/loss-prevention-publications/posters/.
• North is a leading global marine insurer providing P&I, FD&D, war risks and ancillary insurance to 127 million GT of owned tonnage on a mutual basis and 43 million GT of chartered tonnage. Through its guaranteed subsidiary Sunderland Marine, North is also a leading insurer of fishing vessels, small craft and aquaculture risks. The ‘A’ rated Club is based in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK with regional offices in Greece, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore and Sunderland Marine offices worldwide. North is a leading member of the International Group of P&I Clubs (IG), with 11.6% of the IG’s owned tonnage. The 13 IG clubs provide liability cover for approximately 90% of the world’s ocean-going tonnage and, as a member of the IG, North protects and promotes the interests of the international shipping industry.