Ocean cargo. Import and export
Sea freight insurance: what it costs and what it actually covers
Carrier liability is capped, usually by weight not value, so a pallet of electronics and a pallet of sand can carry the same limit. Cargo insurance is a separate purchase, priced on value, route and packing.
General average
a shared loss principle that can bill you even when your cargo is undamaged
Detention clock
storage and demurrage run while a claim is being sorted out
The process
- Tell us the cargo, the route and how it is packed. Two minutes, no account.
- We pass your details to freight forwarding and sourcing firms who place marine cargo risks, and to no one else.
- They quote you directly. We place no insurance and give no advice on which cover to take.
Freight Insurance Cost is an information site. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any agency or company named here, and nothing on it is legal, customs, regulatory or trade advice. We take no commission and carry no paid placements. No premium or rate is published on this site because marine cargo cover is priced individually on commodity, value, route, packing and claims history. Carrier liability limits are terms of the carriage contract and of the applicable convention; read the bill of lading rather than relying on any summary, including this one. Regulatory positions are summarised from the agencies' own pages on the date shown and are a starting point for your own enquiries, not a substitute for them.
What drives a marine cargo insurance premium, and what it does not cover, 2026
Last updated
Cargo insurance is priced on a small number of factors and declined on a smaller number of exclusions. This table sets out both, so a quote can be read against the exposure it is meant to answer.
This table describes how marine cargo cover is structured and rated. It quotes NO premium or rate, because cargo insurance is priced individually on commodity, value, route, packing and claims history, and no public source sets a market rate. Carrier liability is described as commonly limited by weight; the actual limit is a term of the carriage contract and of the applicable convention, which is why the table directs you to read the bill of lading rather than asserting a figure. Detention and demurrage are referenced because they continue accruing during a claim; the Federal Maritime Commission has issued a final rule on billing practices for them. Nothing here is insurance or legal advice.
| Factor | Effect on premium | Why | What to ask, in writing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commodity | Up for high value or fragile | Theft attractiveness and damage susceptibility | Is my commodity inside your appetite at all? |
| Declared value basis | Sets the sum insured | Cost, insurance and freight plus a margin is common | Is the sum insured invoice value, or invoice plus a percentage? |
| Packing | Down for proper export packing | Inadequate packing is a standard exclusion | Would my packing be treated as adequate for this cover? |
| Route and transhipment | Up with transhipments and risk ports | More handling, more exposure | Does the cover follow transhipment and storage in transit? |
| Cover level | Institute clauses A to C narrow progressively | C covers named perils only | Which clauses am I being quoted on? |
| Claims history | Up after losses | Pattern rather than luck | How many years of history do you want? |
| Storage at either end | Often excluded beyond a period | Transit cover is not warehouse cover | How long does cover continue after discharge? |
- Carrier liability is commonly limited by weight rather than by the value of the goods, so a high value pallet can carry the same cap as a low value one.
- Inadequate packing is a standard exclusion in marine cargo cover, which makes packing one of the few premium factors a shipper directly controls.
- Institute Cargo Clauses narrow progressively from A to C, with C covering named perils only, so two quotes on different clauses are not comparable.
- Transit cover generally ends a set period after discharge, so goods sitting at a destination warehouse may be outside it.
- General average can require cargo owners to contribute to a shared loss even where their own goods are undamaged.
Cite this page
“What drives a marine cargo insurance premium, and what it does not cover, 2026”, Freight Insurance Cost, https://freightinsurancecost.com/ (updated 2026-08-15). This table describes how marine cargo cover is structured and rated. It quotes NO premium or rate, because cargo insurance is priced individually on commodity, value, route, packing and claims history, and no public source sets a market rate. Carrier liability is described as commonly limited by weight; the actual limit is a term of the carriage contract and of the applicable convention, which is why the table directs you to read the bill of lading rather than asserting a figure. Detention and demurrage are referenced because they continue accruing during a claim; the Federal Maritime Commission has issued a final rule on billing practices for them. Nothing here is insurance or legal advice.
Related guides
Each one cites where its numbers come from.
Cargo legal liability is not cargo insurance
Carrier liability is capped, usually by weight, and requires proving fault. Cargo insurance is a separate purchase. Why the difference matters at claim.
What cargo insurance does not cover
Packing, inherent vice, delay and war are the standard exclusions. What each means in practice and which are buyable back.
General average: billed for a loss that was not yours
If a vessel sacrifices cargo or incurs extraordinary expense to save the voyage, all cargo owners contribute. What it means and why insurance matters.
Questions, answered directly
Is my cargo covered by the carrier?
Not as most shippers assume. Carrier liability is limited by the contract of carriage and the applicable convention, commonly by weight, not value. A high value pallet can carry the cap of a low value one of equal weight. It is also fault-based in practice. Cargo insurance pays on its terms without proof of fault: a separate purchase.
What is the average cost of cargo insurance?
There is no published average. 6 of 38 sources read on 12 October 2026 publish a figure. Four quote 0.45% to 2% of cargo value, median 1.25%. Two publish flat fees: Maersk Value Protect from USD 29 (up to USD 15,000 of dry cargo), Ship4wd from $20. None splits out air or containers. Sources: our cargo insurance rate index.
What drives the cost of sea freight insurance?
Commodity, declared value, packing, route and transhipments, level of cover, and claims history. Each policy is priced on those; no public source sets a market rate, so the figures above are a range, not a quote. Packing is what you most control: inadequate packing is a standard exclusion, so proper export packing cuts the premium and a claim argument.
What are Institute Cargo Clauses A, B and C?
Standard sets of cover that narrow progressively. C covers named perils only, B is broader, and A is the widest. Two quotes written on different clauses are not comparable, so ask which you are being quoted on before you compare prices. It is one of the most common false comparisons in this market.
What is general average?
Where an extraordinary sacrifice or expenditure is made to save a common maritime adventure, the loss is shared between all interests in proportion to value. If containers are jettisoned or a salvage mounted, every cargo owner contributes; undamaged goods can still owe. Security is demanded before release: uninsured owners post it, insured ones hand it to their insurer.
Does cargo insurance cover delay?
Generally not. Financial loss caused by late arrival is usually excluded even where the delay was caused by an insured peril. That surprises shippers whose real exposure is a missed selling season rather than a damaged box. If timing is the risk you are trying to manage, it is a different conversation and possibly a different product.
How long does cover last after the ship arrives?
Transit cover generally continues for a set period after discharge and then stops, so goods in a destination warehouse may be outside it. Ask how long that period is and what happens if customs clearance is delayed. Detention and demurrage accrue over the same window, and the Federal Maritime Commission has issued a final rule on how those are billed.
What should I do the moment damage is found?
Note it immediately and observe the carriage contract's notification and suit time limits, which are short and unforgiving: missing them ends a claim against the carrier regardless of merit. Photograph the cargo and packing before moving anything, keep the packaging, and notify the carrier and your insurer. Damage found on unpacking a week later commonly falls outside the window.
Sources
This site's own datasets, every figure quoted from its source and dated:
- The median published figure in the Cargo Insurance Rate Index is 1.25 percent across 4 sources' own pages in percent (range 0.45 to 2 percent; 6 sources publish a figure), read 11 November 2026.
- The Cargo Loss Base Rate carries 7 published figures read from 2 sources' own pages; the 4 published figures given by line of business run from 1.50 to 7.90 percent, read 11 November 2026.