The insurance company INGO has settled and paid nearly UAH 11.5 million to indemnify for cargo damaged or destroyed as a result of shelling targeting port infrastructure in the Odesa region. The indemnity relates to 15 containers insured against war risks.
The indemnities were paid in connection with insured events that occurred between November 25, 2025, and January 15, 2026. INGO is currently continuing the adjustment and settlement of three additional insured events involving cargo damaged during shelling of port infrastructure in the Odesa region. The total amount of declared losses across all cases may increase to UAH 21.5 million. The company notes that the loss assessment process is still ongoing.
The damaged cargo included food products, particularly flour, starch, and oil, as well as high-value industrial equipment, including steam boilers. The company emphasizes that loss adjustment in ports during wartime involves a number of specific challenges. One of the key issues is the identification of containers after shelling incidents.
“In some cases, following explosions, containers are so severely deformed that it becomes physically impossible to identify them by their serial numbers. Therefore, to confirm the damage, we simultaneously use several verification sources: we engage independent surveyors and cooperate with port commissions, carriers, and law enforcement authorities,” said Oleksandr Kolpakov.
According to him, after each shelling incident, port administrations establish special commissions to document the consequences of the event and record the damaged containers. Sea carriers confirm the presence of the containers within the affected area, while law enforcement authorities verify the status of the injured party within the framework of criminal proceedings.
On average, the settlement period for such claims does not exceed three months from the date of loss to the date of indemnity payment. The company explains that this timeframe is largely related not to insurance procedures themselves, but to the specifics of investigating war crimes.
“Each such shelling incident constitutes, first and foremost, a war crime committed by the Russian Federation under Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The port territory becomes the site of investigative activities, access to which is temporarily restricted. Surveyors are permitted to begin work only after the required procedural measures have been completed and official authorization to access the incident site has been granted,” Kolpakov explained.
The company also points out that not all cases result in total losses. Certain cargoes require additional examinations and damage assessments, which also affects the timeframe for claim settlement. The speed at which the insured party provides the required set of documents also has a significant impact on the overall settlement period.
War risk insurance remains one of the most complex segments of the insurance market due to the high level of uncertainty and the limited availability of international reinsurance capacity. At the same time, demand for such insurance solutions continues to grow, particularly among companies involved in logistics, exports, and port infrastructure operations.
At the end of 2025, the total amount of insurance coverage provided by INGO under international war risk insurance programs for cargo, fleets, and temporary port storage amounted to approximately EUR 233 million.
