Flag state certainty

Marine insurance intermediary Seacurus has called for more flag states to establish a process of compulsory registration for all providers of seafarer recruitment and placement services (SPRS) in the yachting sector. Thomas Brown, managing director of Seacurus, said: “More countries need to follow the initiatives shown by the likes of the UK and France, with the latter making company registration compulsory for SRPSs in the yachting sector. The measures introduced by the French authorities, for example, provide positive clarification for all seafarers placed on board yachts by French yachting agencies. But, even then, there do appear to be some grey areas in the national regulations which are leading to confusion in the yachting sector.”