West of England P&I Club invests in Astaara

Astaara has secured a “significant investment” from the West of England P&I Club.

The Guernsey-based insurance services and risk management advisory business said the investment will support its push to position itself as the leading marine cyber specialist.

Tom Bowsher, chief executive of the West of England P&I Club, said this was the perfect investment to show its members how seriously it takes cyber security. “The cyber solution provided by Astaara is second to none and the most comprehensive in the market – we are investing in a cyber product and a team that has a huge amount of experience,” he said.

Bowsher highlighted his group’s “long and proud tradition of supporting” the maritime community. The Astaara product is “the only comprehensive and integrated cyber solution that properly aligns the service that owners need with genuine experience, expertise and commitment,” he added.

Robert Dorey, chief executive at Astaara, said: “This investment recognises the underlying demand for marine cyber specialist insurance services and validates the approach of Astaara in addressing the gaps in the existing marine and cyber insurance market.”

He described the current market conditions as “unparalleled in terms of health threats due to global pandemic, to ports, ships crews and head office operations,” which has increased marine operators’ reliance on digitisation. That, in turn, has increased the importance of having high quality cyber coverage.