Last June, a rusting tanker named Sincere 02 picked up oil at an Iranian port and steamed across the Persian Gulf on its way to the United Arab Emirates.
US sanctions forbid Western companies from knowingly doing business with Iran. But for the next seven months, long after an advocacy group publicized Sincere 02‘s voyage, the ship continued to carry proof of insurance from a surprising place: New York City.
That’s the home of American Club, the smallest of the 12 companies that cover most of the world’s oceangoing ships against spills and accidents, and the only one based in the US. American Club provides insurance for 21 vessels suspected of having moved Iranian oil, more than any of its peers, according to a Bloomberg News analysis of a list provided by the group, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI).
That’s 6% of the tankers American Club covers — even after the company recently culled its client list. Since December, when the insurer’s name came up at a congressional hearing and Bloomberg began asking questions, American Club has dropped coverage for Sincere 02 and 18 other vessels accused by UANI of having carried Iranian oil. Many of them had been under suspicion for years but continued to ply the seas, and American Club continued to collect premiums.
American Club says its compliance program is top-notch and that it would never knowingly insure a ship that violates sanctions. It says it’s investigating allegations against two of the 21 that still have coverage and is in the pr