Maritime insurance for your cars
For normal passenger cars, trucks, buses etc, we pay the maritime insurance premium for each vehicle so you don’t have to worry about doing it yourself.
If you are buying high-value and exotic cars, we will not provide maritime insurance (or aviation insurance -- if the car is being air freighted to you) so you will need to make the arrangements at your end.
What does Maritime Insurance Cover?
Maritime insurance covers you in the event of complete loss or total destruction of your vehicles while in transit on the ship.
So, if the ship carrying your cars sinks to the bottom of the ocean and all your cars are lost, maritime insurance kicks in. Or, if the ship carrying your cars is destroyed by a fire that also destroys your cars, maritime insurance kicks in.
This insurance does not cover damage to vehicles, nor does it cover the vehicles when they are not actually on the ship.
Additional Clarification
Please note that the details of coverage, the method of claims etc are governed by each individual insurance contract. This coverage is provided by a reputable maritime insurance company, not by Integrity Exports itself as we are not an insurance company.
If you need to make a claim, you should make it directly to the insurance company although, of course, we will be happy to provide any supporting documentation you need to submit the claim. The job of making the claim and dealing with the insurance company will rest with you.
As per our Terms of Business, Integrity Exports covers you for losses and damage on the Japan-side until vehicles pass through Japanese customs.
Insurance To Cover Damage To Vehicles During Shipping
Maritime insurance only covers you for the total loss or total destruction of the vehicle while it is in transit. What about damage to your vehicles. Is it possible to get that covered?
The quick answer is yes. You are welcome to seek out your own insurance provider and get your own coverage that includes damage insurance. Often plans will be available on a car-by-car basis, or you can buy annual insurance to cover all the cars you are importing.
If you choose to do this you must notify us. The reason is that your damage insurance plan will also include the basic maritime insurance cover that protects you in the event of complete loss or complete destruction of the vehicle.
Why does that matter? Well, let's imagine the worst-case scenario that your car is lost due to an accident at sea. Now you will have two insurance plans that cover that loss. You may think that's a good idea, but it isn't. What will happen is that those two insurance companies will then have a long drawn-out battle to determine who gets to pay out. In the end, they are likely to go fifty-fifty - but in the meantime, you receive no compensation and may even be billed extra for salvage costs.
If you take out your own additional insurance, you must contact us so that we can cancel the more basic coverage we have bought for the car. Then you will just have the one insurance company to deal with in the even that something goes wrong.
We find that the most successful importers really understand how it all works - from the auction to the ship and beyond. Don't get left behind!
