Alcohol Onboard
31st July 2024
A few words of caution from our friend Hugo Jacqout at Fort Insurance.…
“With the summer days upon us, it will be tempting for crew to go and share a few drinks together, however with most yachts and superyachts having a zero-tolerance policy for alcohol and drug consumption, what may seem to be an innocent social event with crew members could end up in a very costly affair for owners.
Indeed, whilst crew may consume alcohol away from the vessel, they will in most cases come back onboard the yacht under the influence of alcohol as it is their accommodation.
Should they get injured or worse injure / hurt another crew member or guest whilst under the influence of alcohol this could have some repercussions on the owner’s insurance cover.
Most crew healthcare policies will have exclusions for injury or death occurring under the influence of alcohol and drugs which means that owners may have uncovered losses. An owner could always call upon their P&I insurer to cover their liabilities towards their crew but if the crew contract clearly stipulates that the yacht had zero tolerance for drug and alcohol consumption then in the absence of an owner’s tortious liability the owner’s P&I policy may not respond either. In any case those scenarios are always highly sensitive and difficult to handle for all parties.
The best advice to owners and managers is crew training / awareness and loss prevention by putting in place clear rules and best practice onboard their yachts.”
