Trade Tech offering insurance product

Trade Tech offering insurance product    Trade Tech, a supplier of Web-based supply chain and transportation applications, said it has begun offering a new, on-demand marine insurance program.
   When collecting data for either Automated Manifest System or 10+2 security filings using Trade Tech’s “Trade Manager” system, freight forwarders and customs house brokers are now able to purchase marine insurance with the press of a button.
   Trade Tech has contracted with Baldwin Resource Group of Bellevue, Wash., a risk management and insurance specialist, and the underwriter Chubb Group, to provide the service.
   Chubb pays insurance claims and handles the investigation of the claim, while Baldwin Resource Group handles all associated customer service issues.
   Bryn Heimbeck, Trade Tech's chief executive officer, said the advantages to the new insurance offering are competitive pricing and the security of knowing that shipments have been insured before sailing.
   'The process of purchasing insurance is often duplicated and shippers, forwarders and brokers sometimes forget or they are too busy with other processes,' Heimbeck said.
   'In this situation, the customs broker or freight forwarder loses the opportunity to sell insurance and they are not covering the customer, which can lead to a major liability,' he said.
   The new product will automate obtaining insurance in one step from the bill of lading, he said, “which frees up the user's time and mitigates the risk of forgetting. It's right there at their fingertips as part of a complete application.'
   The company also said that because the Trade Tech software captures so much of the information critical to establishing the full chain of command for shipments, Chubb is able to offer very competitive pricing because of the ease of conducting liability studies should an insurance claim be necessary.