Some charterers may nominate agents that do not align with the owner’s preferences or with whom the owner has had negative past experiences. In such cases, an owners' protective agency can act on the owner’s behalf to nominate the charterer’s agent, while fully safeguarding and upholding the owner’s interests at all times.

Agents nominated by charterers often prioritize the interests of the charterer, shipper, supplier, or receiver over their obligations to the owner. This may result in the owner’s variable expenses not being maximally reduced, or laytime issues not being optimally addressed—often without the vessel operator’s knowledge. This problem becomes more pronounced when operators are unfamiliar with the port, the relevant parties involved, or the various tactics employed. However, owners' protective agencies have extensive experience in navigating these scenarios and are committed to using this expertise to protect the owner’s interests, ensuring the appointed agent acts with transparency and integrity.

Owners' protective agency services are often mistakenly viewed as unnecessary additional port costs and are frequently the first expense cut when operators seek to reduce spending. In reality, the fee for such services has repeatedly proven to "pay for itself" over time: it can lead to lower expenditures, more favorable laytime outcomes, or increased freight revenue by supervising the final stages of cargo operations to maximize loading volume. While savings cannot be guaranteed for every port call, the shipping industry is characterized by high stakes and high costs. Historical experience shows that having a conflict-free partner solely focused on protecting the owner’s interests delivers far more value than the cost of the service in the long run.

An owners' protective agency serves as your "extra eyes and ears", ensuring you never pay more than necessary. For questions or more information about protective agency services, please refer to the Contacts page.