Who actually insures your cargo
"Cargo insurance" reaches you through six quite different channels, and the channel decides more than the price: what gets accepted, how fast you get a certificate, whose balance sheet pays, and who argues the claim. Before comparing quotes, it is worth knowing which door you are knocking on.
We have no published panel yet
You will not find named insurers, financial-strength ratings or appetite tables on this page. We are pre-launch and our panel is still being assembled — publishing profiles and ratings for markets that have not agreed to quote here would be inventing facts about regulated third parties.
When markets are on the panel, each gets a page here with its own disclosed licences, territories and financial-strength rating, sourced from the market itself. Until then, this page explains the channels so you can read any quote — ours or anyone's — with the right questions in hand.
Underwriter, MGA or broker with cargo appetite? Talk to us about quoting here.
The Lloyd’s market
Syndicates subscribing to a risk through a broker, with capacity for the awkward and the very large.
- Who carries the risk
- Each subscribing syndicate, severally rather than jointly, for its own percentage of the risk.
- Best for
- Cargo that an automated product will not price — unusual commodities, difficult routes, values above a standard binder, or anything needing a bespoke clause.
The company market
Balance-sheet insurers writing cargo directly or through brokers, on their own paper and wording.
- Who carries the risk
- The insurer whose name is on the policy, for the whole risk.
- Best for
- Regular shippers moving mainstream cargo who want one policy, one renewal conversation and declarations rather than certificate-by-certificate buying.
Managing general agents (MGAs)
Underwriting on delegated authority from an insurer — the channel behind most instant cargo cover.
- Who carries the risk
- The insurer standing behind the binder, not the MGA.
- Best for
- Occasional shippers and per-shipment buyers who need a certificate in minutes rather than a placement conversation.
Retail and specialist brokers
Your agent, not the insurer’s — they shop the market and argue your claim.
- Who carries the risk
- Whichever insurer or syndicate the broker places the risk with.
- Best for
- Anyone with a complex risk, a disputed claim, a contractual cover requirement to interpret, or enough volume that terms are negotiable.
Forwarder-arranged cover
The tick-box on the booking — convenient, and the least transparent way to buy.
- Who carries the risk
- The insurer behind the forwarder’s facility.
- Best for
- Low-value shipments where the administrative saving outweighs knowing what you bought.
Captives and self-insurance
Carrying your own cargo risk deliberately, with reinsurance above a retention.
- Who carries the risk
- You do, up to the retention.
- Best for
- Large shippers with stable loss history, the capital to hold a retention, and enough premium spend that the market’s margin is worth reclaiming.
Five questions to ask whoever is selling you cover
- 01 Which insurer carries the risk, and what is its financial strength rating?A broker or MGA brand on a certificate is not a balance sheet. You are owed the name of the carrier and its rating.
- 02 Which clause level is this — (A), (B) or (C) — and is the wording amended?Clause names are reused loosely. An amended (A) can exclude things standard (A) covers, and only the wording tells you.
- 03 What is the sum insured basis, and does it include freight, duty and the 10%?Insuring the invoice alone is the most common under-insurance mistake, and average clauses can then cut the claim proportionally.
- 04 What is the deductible, and does it apply per shipment or per package?Per-package deductibles on a mixed consignment can wipe out a claim that looks well above the excess.
- 05 Who handles a claim, and what is the notification deadline?The answer tells you whether you will be dealing with the insurer, an adjuster, or the forwarder whose handling caused the loss.