Humanitarian support of seafarers and their families in cases of armed robbery and piracy attack

Seafarers continue to be the target of pirates and armed robbers.

These incidents remain a very real concern for seafarers, their families, and the shipping companies for which they work. As such, the Club would like to draw attention to Humanitarian support of seafarers and their families in cases of armed robbery and piracy attacks, a guide recommending best practice in the support of seafarers and their families before, during and after an incident.

The International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) has published the guide, which is free to download and reproduce, with support from the International Chamber of Shipping, the International Maritime Bureau, the International Maritime Employers' Council, and the Oil Companies International Marine Forum. There are also templates and guidance on procedures which compliments existing guidance, such as BMP 5 and BMP West Africa which can be used by companies to supplement the procedures they may already have in place.

The International Chamber of Shipping provides a number of resources on their webpage, Piracy.

The Shipowners’ Club and ISWAN

The Club partnered with ISWAN, whose ethos sits naturally alongside the Club in aiming to assist Members with all aspects of risk mitigation and contribute towards ISWAN’s Seafarers Health Information Project (SHIP), an initiative that promotes and distributes health information materials to shipping companies, seafarers’ centres, and direct to seafarers. The Club looks to distribute the SHIP health and well-being information to the vessel crews, owners, operators, and managers who make up the Club’s membership.