London P&I Club: P&I Class General Increase of 5 Percent as Improvements Consolidated

The London P&I Club's Committee has set a general increase of 5 per cent for P&I premiums for the 2010/2011 policy year.

The Club's open policy years are developing in line with expectations, and the general increase for the forthcoming P&I year reflects the Committee's determination to consolidate improvements made to the Club's financial position.

Ian Gooch, Chief Executive of the Club's Management team, comments: "It is still too early to assess the full impact of the economic downturn, and the P&I industry continues to face challenges on various fronts. These include exposure to random, substantial claims and uncertain investment conditions. Although there are signs of moderation in the cost of attritional claims and our investment portfolio has produced a positive year to date, we will continue to adopt a cautious approach moving forward."

P&I deductible levels have also been reviewed and there will be an increase of US$1,000 to all deductibles currently below US$15,000.

Claims continue to run at a high level in Freight, Demurrage and Defence (FD&D) and the Club's Committee has authorised a general premium increase of 20% for that Class for the 2010/2011 year to reflect this.