India's war-risk insurance pool faces its first real-world test

Mumbai: The newly-launched Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool (BMI Pool) has received its first claim after a vessel covered under the arrangement was reportedly damaged in a drone attack in the Black Sea, people familiar with the development told ET.

This marks the first test of India's sovereign-backed war risk insurance mechanism amid mounting tensions in West Asia, where attacks on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz and the subsequent death of an India seaman prompted New Delhi to summon Tehran's envoy recently.

The Black Sea incident happened over the weekend and the claim is currently being assessed, with surveyors evaluating the extent of damage and the likely payout. While the claim size is yet to be determined, it is expected to fall within the pool's underwriting capacity of up to $100 million per risk.


"It is unfolding. Maybe in two days' time we will have a better picture of all the aspects," a person familiar with the matter said.

Under the structure approved by the government, the BMI Pool will settle claims of up to $100 million using industry capacity. Claims exceeding that threshold will be backed by the government's sovereign guarantee of ₹12,980 crore, providing an additional layer of protection for catastrophic losses.

The pool was launched to reduce India's dependence on overseas insurers for war risk cover and ensure uninterrupted insurance availability for Indian shipowners operating in conflict-prone regions. It offers coverage across hull and machinery, cargo, protection and indemnity (P&I), and war risk for Indian-flagged and Indian-controlled vessels.

Indian general insurers, led by GIC Re and New India Assurance, have created the initial $100 million industry pool, which serves as the first layer of protection for vessels operating in high-risk maritime corridors. Beyond this, the sovereign guarantee acts as a backstop to support larger claims.

While the pool feature specifies a maximum exposure for each insured vessel, it does not impose a cap on losses arising from a single event, said another source.

"There is a possibility that multiple vessels may be involved in a single attack. The pool guidelines define adequately what is an event. So single risk limits are prescribed, events are defined, but event limits as such are not defined," the person said.

Instead, claims will be assessed based on the defined event and the applicable single-risk limit for each vessel. This structure allows the pool to handle incidents involving multiple ships while applying the claim limit to each vessel individually.