P&I insurance is probably the most important marine insurance a ship owner purchases and is compulsory to trade, as in the absence of P&I cover a vessel will be unable to satisfy its International Convention obligations and consequently unable to call into any country. P&I is an insurance safety net protecting an owner’s bottom line against third party liability. It is a key relationship where the P&I insurer is viewed as the de facto extension of a ship owner’s office in a way no other marine insurer is. This unique positioning is heightened by the commercial importance commercial partners, including state owned shippers, oil majors, trading houses, terminal operators and Port Authorities attach to who provides the vessel’s P&I cover. How a ship owner handles a maritime casualty, impacts others in the commercial chain and how they are viewed when innocent third parties suffer loss or an ecological/ environmental disaster happens. It is important, therefore, that a ship owner has a responsive P&I provider, with a cultural ethos that matches the ship owner’s individual needs.