UK Club named the best in Asia

The UK P&I Club has been named "Marine Insurance Provider" of 2003 at an awards ceremony in Shanghai on 4th December 2003. Herry Lawford, the UK Club's Service Director, was presented the award by Zhang Liping, Executive Director of Cosco on behalf of the sponsors, Cosco Container Lines. Group President and Chief Executive of Cosco, Captain Wei Jiafu, himself received the "Hall of Fame" award.
The finalists for each award are drawn from nominations submitted by readers of Lloyd's List Maritime Asia and Lloyd's List worldwide. The final selection was made by a panel of judges based in Asia, including R Kondoh of IAPH, B Saragih of the Indonesian Shipowners' Association, J Y Yu of the Singapore Shippers' Council and shipping analyst Matthew Flynn.
Commenting on the award, Mr Lawford said:
"This is a great achievement for the UK P&I Club and one which pays tribute to the commitment and enthusiasm of all those in our offices not only in Asia, but around the world. This past year has been a demanding one for the marine insurance industry, during which the P&I clubs as a whole have shown significant professionalism and resilience. Everyone contributing to the P&I clubs' standing in such times should be congratulated."
The UK Club has won the "Best P&I Club" title at previous Lloyd's List Maritime Asia Awards ceremonies in 1999 and 2000. No such category was included in the 2001 and 2002 ceremonies.
This year's event, which was attended by 450 of Asia's leading shipping industry figures, also included an award for "Best Tanker Operator", sponsored by the UK P&I Club and presented by Mr Lawford to Hong Kong's World-Wide Shipping.