The Ever Forward Re-Floated after being stuck for 35 days: What happens next?

The 35-day saga of the stuck container vessel – the Ever Forward – came to an end on Sunday April 17th when attempts to get the ship re-floated finally succeeded. The ship, operated by Taiwan based shipping company Evergreen Marine Corporation, got stuck in Chesapeake Bay in Maryland on March 13th.

This was the third attempt to re-float the ship. In addition to dredging along the sides of the ship, an operation was undertaken to remove some of the nearly 4,900 containers on board to lighten the load. These containers were transported by tugboat to the Baltimore port, where the ship will also undergo a hull inspection before being reloaded and allowed to continue its journey.

“The vastness and complexity of this response were historic, as an incident like the Ever Forward grounding, is a rare occurrence,” said Capt. David O’Connell, commander of Coast Guard Sector Maryland-National Capital Region. “It was the collaboration of each responding agency, Evergreen Marine Corporation, and dedicated responders that resulted in the successful refloating of Ever Forward while ensuring the safety of the public and response personnel, mitigating pollution potential and minimizing economic impacts.”

So, what does this mean to the people and businesses with cargo involved in this incident?

On March 31st Evergreen declared a “General Average” (GA) due to the increasing costs arising from the continued attempts to refloat the 334 m long vessel and continued delays of the same, with Richard Hogg Lindsay nominated as the GA adjustor.

General Average is a principle of maritime law that establishes that all sea cargo stakeholders (owner, shippers, etc.) evenly share any damage or losses that may occur as a result of voluntary sacrifice of part of the vessel or cargo to save the whole in an emergency. The basis behind this principle is that a party who has suffered extreme financial loss to save property belonging to others has the right to be compensated for such loss.?When GA is declared, cargo owners are required to contribute to a GA fund before their cargo can be released. Following this the adjustors will work to calculate the actual loss and the amount shippers will have to pay in the end. This process can take anywhere from 2 to 7 years to calculate.

A declaration of general average effectively gives the shipping company the right to hold on to the cargo until the procedure has been satisfactorily completed. The first step for shippers would be to pay the General Average deposit in order to have their goods released.

This unfortunately leaves shippers with uninsured cargo highly vulnerable to losing it, as the shipping company can hold the goods under lien until the deposit is paid.?Shippers with insurance coverage will have those deposits covered by their insurers.

While this kind of situation is rare, it does happen occasionally, and if you are unlucky enough to have goods on that one ship in a hundred that has an issue you are in a tough situation if you haven’t taken out insurance. You stand to lose a lot more than what your insurance would have cost which is why it is always advisable to invest in insurance, and ensure you are properly covered.

When you plan to move your goods always talk to your agent about insurance and ensure that your coverage includes not just loss or damage during door to door moves but also issues such as GA should they arise.

At Asian Tigers we arrange everything for you from packing to shipping and help you understand your insurance options. Talk to one of our Move Consultants to discuss your needs.