Routine Tasks Remain Leading Cause of Seafarer Injuries, Gard Report Warns

## Routine Work Poses Greatest Injury Risk to Seafarers, Gard Finds Norwegian marine insurer Gard has issued a stark warning to the shipping industry: the greatest threat to seafarer safety is not extraordinary circumstances or emergencies, but the routine work of everyday shipboard life. The findings come from Gard's third Crew Claims Report, which draws on approximately 3,000 P&I crew claims compiled in 2025. According to Splash247, the report highlights a persistent and concerning pattern — a significant proportion of injuries are sustained by experienced crew members carrying out tasks they have performed many times before. ### Familiarity as a Risk Factor The report's conclusions challenge a common assumption in safety management: that experience and familiarity with a task reduce the likelihood of injury. Gard's data suggests the opposite dynamic may be at play, with routine and repetitive work potentially leading to reduced vigilance, complacency, or shortcuts in safety procedures. This phenomenon, sometimes referred to as 'normalisation of deviance,' is well-documented in occupational safety research but remains difficult to address through conventional training and compliance frameworks alone. ### Implications for Ship Operators and Managers For shipowners, managers, and P&I clubs, the findings carry significant practical implications. Crew claims arising from personal injury represent a substantial and recurring cost within the P&I insurance sector. More importantly, each incident represents a human cost — lost working time, long-term health impacts, and the personal toll on seafarers and their families. Gard's report underscores the need for shipping companies to look beyond high-risk or infrequent operations when designing safety management systems. Deck maintenance, mooring operations, cargo handling, and engine room tasks — the bread and butter of shipboard life — demand the same rigorous risk assessment and procedural discipline as more obviously hazardous activities. ### A Call for Cultural Change Industry observers note that addressing routine-task injuries requires more than updated procedures or additional signage. It demands a genuine safety culture in which crew members at all levels feel empowered to pause, reassess, and speak up — even when performing tasks they have completed hundreds of times before. Gard's continued investment in crew claims analysis reflects a broader industry trend toward data-driven safety management. By identifying patterns across thousands of claims, insurers and operators alike can target interventions more effectively and allocate resources where they will have the greatest impact. The full findings of Gard's third Crew Claims Report are available through the insurer's publications platform and are recommended reading for fleet managers, safety officers, and maritime HR professionals.