Recently, the Central and municipal governments have issued many policies to support fishermen to buy hull insurance for their fishing vessels. However, the number of fishing boats covered by marine hull insurance still remains low because many fishermen are still not interested in such policies.

Fishing boats are about to leave the Tho Quang Fishing Wharf. Photo: VAN HOANG

Hull insurance - “lifebuoy” for fishermen

In October 2020, fisherman Nguyen Van Binh-owned fishing boat in Tho Quang Ward, Son Tra District was badly damaged in a storm. Some equipment and fishing gear on board were badly damaged, and they were unable to be used for fishing activities.

Thanks to hull insurance, all costs of repair were fully covered by the insurance unit, whilst the procedures and records were handled promptly and quickly.

Mr. Binh said that fishing at sea faces many risks, so insurance is considered as a "lifebuoy" for fishermen when there is an incident or accident at sea.

Since 2018, his fishing vessel DNa91095 TS has been involved in hull and engine insurance.

In 2021, thanks to the municipal and central governments' support policies, the hull insurance cost for Mr. Binh’s ship was VND27 million, but he only paid 10%, equivalent to VND2.7 million. Also, all 7 crew members on board were supported by the city in terms of crew insurance.

“The cost for building a fishing ship is up to several billions of VND. Without insurance, it will be very difficult for fishermen to restore production when an incident occurs" Binh said.

Being aware of the risks that arise during fishing activities at sea, every year, Mr. Nguyen Van Tieng, residing in Nai Hien Dong Ward, Son Tra District, spends nearly VND120 million in insurance premium for three his fishing boats.

Thanks to the municipal and central governments' support policies, Mr. Tieng only pays 10% of the total, or VND12 million per year.

According to Mr. Tieng, the insurance premium paid by Da Nang fishermen is still very low compared to the total value of the ship. Therefore, he stressed the need for fishermen to be proactive in ensuring the property and lives of crew members on board.

In fact, many fishermen do not clearly understand the insurance units’ compensation policies, leading to difficulties in paying when the fishing vessel has an accident. Therefore, fishermen need to understand the terms attached to avoid disputes when buying insurance for fishing vessels.

Despite knowing the benefits of insurance, this year, Mr. Bui Lai, the owner of fishing ship DNa90423 TS, residing in Nai Hien Dong Ward, Son Tra District, does not buy hull insurance.

Mr. Lai said that many insurance units are only selling insurance for hulls, not for machinery parts. While machinery is the most easily damaged part and costs a lot to repair. Besides, according to regulations, fishermen are not required to buy hull insurance, so many people refuse to participate in.

According to the Fisheries Sub-Department under the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, as of May 2022, the whole city had had 1,230 boats registered for fishing activities. Of which, 585 fishing vessels with a length of 15m or more are operating in the high seas, 320 with a length of from 12m to under 15m are conducting fishing activities in the inland areas, and 325 with less than 12m in length are operating in coastal areas.

Although the Central and municipal governments have issued many support policies, since 2019, only 369 turns of fishing vessels have registered to buy hull insurance.

Encouraging and supporting fishermen to buy hull insurance

It is known that fishermen in Da Nang are being supported by insurance under the two policies issued by the central and municipal governments.

According to Prime Minister-signed Decision No. 48/2010/QD-TTg, fishing vessels engaged in fishing activities in remote waters will be supported 50% of hull insurance premium and 100% of crew accident insurance premium.

As for Da Nang People's Council-adopted Resolution No. 255/2019/NQ-HDND, fishing boats with main engine capacity of 90CV and length of 12m or more will be supported 40% of hull insurance premium. In addition to its annual source of career funding, the municipal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development supports 100% of crew accident insurance premium for fishing boats with12-15m in length operating in the lagoon.

Son Tra District has the highest number of offshore fishing vessels in the whole city, but has the lowest number of fishing vessels buying hull insurance.

Mrs. Nguyen Thi Phuong Mai, Head of the district’s Economic Office, said that the involvement of fishermen in hull insurance is only "recommended" but not required. Besides, difficulties in fishing activities and the post-investment support process are the reasons why the number of fishing vessels with insurance is limited.

“In order to remove difficulties and create favourable conditions for fishermen to buy hull insurance, the district authorities have written to the municipal People’s Council to consider and propose to adjust the process of supporting the cost of purchasing hull insurance. Accordingly, fishermen only pay 10% of hull insurance premiums instead of 100% and be paid back according to current regulations" added Mrs. Mai.

Mr. Luu Quang Khanh, Head of the city’s Fisheries Sub-Department, said that his unit was strengthening coordination with localities to guide fishermen to participate in insurance support policies. The focus has been on making some suggestions to the municipal People’s Committee about approving financial support for fishermen to buy hull and crew insurance. This will help to increase the proportion of fishermen participating in hull insurance, thereby contributing to helping ship owners recover production in case of accidents and risks and creating peace of mind to head out to sea.

Reporting by VAN HOANG - Translating by M.DUNG