Baltimore disaster could see record insurance payouts — but it’s complicated: expert

foxbusiness.com:

Maryland Motor Truck Association President & CEO Louis Campion discusses the impact of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse on truck and shipping routes on The Bottom Line.

The total insurance payouts that will come as a result of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsing in Baltimore will likely run into billions of dollars and could end up being the largest marine insurance payout of all time – topping the Costa Concordia luxury cruise liner disaster in 2012 that saw $1.5 billion being paid out. 

The insurance claims process is expected to be complicated, with various parties involved, and determining who bears responsibility will be a key factor in deciding who gets paid what.

Eight construction workers, all of whom were from Central America, plummeted into the water after the Dali, a Singaporean-flagged container ship, slammed into the bridge, causing it to collapse. Two were rescued after the collapse. Divers have recovered the bodies of two others, and the other four are presumed dead. 

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The Francis Scott Key Bridge and the Dali cargo vessel pictured on March 29, 2023. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Those deaths and injuries will form one avenue of insurance claims, while the collapse itself – including the rebuilding of the bridge and the financial knock-on effect of its destruction – will form another multi-layered path of claims, an expert says.

The port, which has been closed due to the deadly incident, is the busiest in the U.S. for car shipments, handling more than 750,000 vehicles in 2023, according to data from the Maryland Port Administration. It is also the largest U.S. port by volume for handling farm and construction