ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the role of providers of insurance for liabilities faced by shipowners for oil pollution and other environmental risks, particularly the P&I Clubs in the International Group. A description of their history, structure and reinsurance arrangements is followed by an examination of the scope of cover provided and the central role which P&I Clubs play as the main providers of financial security under international compensation regimes. An account is given of the procedures whereby financial security is provided through the issue of Convention “Blue Cards” to states and of the resulting legal liabilities which arise towards third-party claimants.
