How much does cargo insurance cost?
Cargo cover is quoted as a rate per 100 of insured value. Ordinary containerised general cargo on a clean loss record commonly falls between 0.03% and 0.15% of the insured value. Target commodities, exposed routings or a recent large claim push the rate several times higher, and every certificate carries a minimum premium — on small shipments the minimum, not the rate, is what you pay.
Indicative premium estimator
Deterministic bands built from published market ranges. It is an indication for budgeting, not a quote — only the insurer can quote, and only after underwriting.
Insured value
$280,500
CIF + 10%
Indicative rate
0.042% – 0.087%
of insured value
Indicative premium
$250 – $250
Certificate minimum of $250 applies
Indicative only, for budgeting. Not a quote and not an offer of cover. No cover, pool or Guard protection is active until your first payment has cleared. A submitted enquiry, a signed proposal or an approved application does not bind cover.
How the insured value is calculated
The market convention, and the requirement under CIF and CIP sales, is commercial invoice value plus freight plus insurance, plus 10% to represent the buyer’s anticipated profit. That total is the sum insured; the rate is applied to it. Under-declaring the value saves a trivial amount of premium and leaves you underinsured on the only day it matters.
Worked examples
Dry 40ft of packaged industrial goods, Shanghai to Long Beach
- Commercial invoice value $120,000, freight and insurance $3,400.
- Insured value = ($120,000 + $3,400) x 1.10 = $135,740.
- Indicative rate band 0.03% - 0.06%.
- Indicative premium $41 - $81 — below the certificate minimum, so the minimum applies.
Low-value, low-risk shipments are priced by the minimum premium, not the rate.
High-value electronics, Shenzhen to Rotterdam, one transhipment
- Commercial invoice value $780,000, freight and insurance $6,100.
- Insured value = ($780,000 + $6,100) x 1.10 = $864,710.
- Indicative rate band 0.11% - 0.23%.
- Indicative premium $951 - $1,989.
Target commodity plus a transhipment leg is what moves this band, not the value alone.
Reefer of chilled produce, Callao to Philadelphia
- Commercial invoice value $210,000, freight and insurance $8,900.
- Insured value = ($210,000 + $8,900) x 1.10 = $240,790.
- Indicative rate band 0.08% - 0.16%.
- Indicative premium $193 - $385.
Note what is not in this figure: if the box sits on the quay and racks up reefer plug and demurrage charges, the cargo policy pays nothing.
What raises and lowers the rate
| Commodity | Target goods (electronics, pharma, branded apparel, spirits) and fragile or temperature-sensitive cargo attract the highest rates. Machinery and packaged industrial goods sit at the bottom. |
| Insured value | The rate is quoted per 100 of insured value, so the value formula matters as much as the rate. The market convention is CIF plus 10%. |
| Route and transhipment | Direct port pairs price better than routings with transhipment, feeder legs or long inland drayage. War and strikes cover is rated separately for listed areas. |
| Conveyance and packing | FCL under deck prices better than LCL or on-deck carriage. Documented export packing and container seals reduce theft and handling loss rating. |
| Loss history | Three clean years is the strongest lever you have. A single large claim inside the last three years typically moves the rate more than the commodity does. |
| Deductible | Raising the per-shipment deductible lowers the rate. Beyond a point it just moves small losses onto you without moving the premium much. |
The cost of carrying it yourself
Carrier liability is capped by convention — roughly 2 SDR per kilo or 666.67 SDR per package under the Hague-Visby Rules — so a full container of high-value goods recovers a fraction of its worth even when the carrier is plainly at fault. The sharper exposure is general average: when a vessel declares GA, every cargo owner contributes in proportion to value and the carrier holds the container until security is posted. An insured shipper hands over the insurer’s guarantee; an uninsured one wires a cash deposit before the cargo moves.
And neither of those is what a cargo policy pays for delay: demurrage, detention and reefer power charges sit outside every grade of cover. Sellexio Guard exists for that gap, and a freight audit recovers the portion that was billed wrongly in the first place.
Cargo insurance cost FAQ
How much does cargo insurance cost?
Ocean cargo cover is quoted as a rate per 100 of insured value. Ordinary containerised general cargo on a clean loss record commonly falls between 0.03% and 0.15% of the insured value, with target commodities, difficult routes or a poor loss record running several times higher. Minimum premiums per certificate mean small shipments cost proportionally more.
How is the insured value calculated?
The market convention, and the requirement under CIF and CIP sales, is commercial invoice value plus freight plus insurance, plus 10% to represent the buyer’s anticipated profit. That total is the sum insured, and the rate is applied to it.
What is a minimum premium?
Every certificate carries a floor — often in the low hundreds — regardless of how small the shipment is. On low-value consignments the minimum, not the rate, is what you actually pay.
How do I lower the premium?
Move from single-shipment certificates to an annual open cover, raise the deductible, document export packing and container sealing, avoid on-deck and transhipment routings where you can, and keep a clean three-year loss record.
When does cover actually start?
Under the standard transit clause cover attaches when the goods first move for the purpose of the transit and ends on delivery, subject to time limits after discharge. Commercially, nothing is on risk until the premium has been paid — a quote, an application or a signed proposal does not bind cover.
Get a real quote
Send your commodity, lanes and annual shipped value and we will introduce you to the maritime insurance partner we have approved. They quote and underwrite; Sellexio does not issue or bind cover.
Request a placement introductionNo cover, pool or Guard protection is active until your first payment has cleared. A submitted enquiry, a signed proposal or an approved application does not bind cover.