The insurance industry is set to face significant claims for ships that were damaged during the Iran war, according to Allianz SE.
The company said in its annual safety and shipping review that it had already received such claims stemming from the conflict, some of which could include tota
l losses of vessels. The report didn’t give a value of the potential hit, though it estimated that vessels and cargo with a combined value of $125 billion were trapped in the Persian Gulf as of June 15.
Insurance premiums in the niche corner of the insurance market that protects vessels against war risks surged as a result of the conflict. While that can mean some ves
sels are paying more than a million dollars a voyage to enter or exit the Strait of Hormuz, those revenues take a hit when there are a significant number of incidents. In the earlies days of the war, there were attacks on ships almost every day.
“Clearly, loss of life and property damage – in terms of both vessels and their cargo – are the m
ain causes to date,” said Regis Broudin, global head of marine claims at Allianz Commercial.
The vessels impacted by the claims include container ships, bulk carriers and oil tankers that were hit by drones and missiles, according to the report.
The United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a jury could find beyond a reasonable doubt that Christopher Filline, a police chief in Castroville, conspired wit
h a colleague to commit wire fraud. Filline argued the government failed to show there was agreement to a scheme between two parties.
In 2016, Filline and his wife were under serious financial stress, facing $30,000 in credit card debt, and delinquent mortgage and car payments. Filline’s wife drove a 2007 Lincoln Navigator, a car that Filline complained was a “piece of junk.”
Ambrose Rymers, who worked under Filline as an animal-control officer, testified that Filline asked him on several occasions to get rid of the Navigator. Sympathetic to Filline’s financial troubles, Rymers contacted cousin with a cri
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minal background to help with destroying the vehicle.
The scheme was enacted on July 16, when Rymers’ cousin took the Challenger to a dead-end road in Bexar County, doused it with gasoline, and set it on fire, while Rymers watched. The two drove away from the scene.
Filline reported the car was stolen first to his insurance agent before reporting the theft to the Lyttle Police Department. An officer with the police department found the re
porting delay strange, while another office noted Filline’s behavior, calm and collected rather than upset, to be unusual.
The police department and Farmers Insurance opened separate investigations into the burning. A Farmers claims investigator found several red flags. Farmers does
not usually encounter a vehicle recovered burned, the investigator testified, because burning a vehicle leaves no profit for the thief. Another red flag was Filline’s decision to contact his insurance agent before the police.
The claims investigator learned of Filline’s financial issues, facts that contributed to a potential motivation for insurance fraud. However, the insurance and police investi
gations stalled for a lack of new leads, and Farmers agreed to pay Filline approximately $14,000 to cover the remainder of the Navigator’s loan.
