Hapag-Lloyd

Hapag-Lloyd is one of the world’s biggest shipping companies with a history that dates back to the middle-1800s. Like other maritime companies, it operates in a dangerous industry. Hapag-Lloyd has seen several accidents and must maintain a responsibility to protect its maritime workers.

About Hapag-Lloyd

This large shipping company employs nearly 10,000 people. Of those, 1,500 are seagoing workers. These seamen do risky jobs operating container shipping vessels and taking them worldwide. The company has just under 200 vessels in its fleet, with ten with a capacity of more than 10,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs).

The Hapag-Lloyd vessels travel the globe on 122 shipping lines between all the world’s major ports. The company serves more than 500 ports, big and small:

• 242 in Asia
• 169 in Europe
• 99 in South America
• 28 in North America

It ships all kinds of products, including foodstuff, machines, paper and wood, chemicals, raw materials, electronics, and automobiles.

Hapag-Lloyd History

The history of the modern company of Hapag-Lloyd goes back to a merger in 1970 between Lloyd and Hamburg America Line. The history of these two companies goes back much further.

• Hamburg America Line, or Hapag, was founded in Hamburg, Germany, in 1847 as a faster service for travel between Germany and North America.
• Lloyd was founded in Bremen, Germany, in 1856 with cargo shipping and passenger travel between Germany and New York.
• Since the two companies merged in 1970 to become Hapag-Lloyd, they developed the container shipping aspect of the business.
• By 1998 the company had become a subsidiary of the larger TUI AG, a company headquartered in Hanover, Germany.
• In addition to shipping, Hapag-Lloyd operates a cruise line with four ships.
• The company also has a charter airline, which was originally intended to be used to fly passengers to cruise ports of call.

Dangers of Shipping

The maritime industry is always dangerous, but container shipping faces particular risks that companies like Hapag-Lloyd face daily.

As a large company, it has to ensure that hundreds of ships are seaworthy, equipment is maintained, and thousands of employees are adequately trained in how to do their jobs and safety and emergency procedures.

Container shipping workers face several dangers that can lead to injuries and even deaths: 

• These include bad weather that can cause ships to capsize or workers to fall overboard.
• They also face the risks of huge, heavy containers coming loose and shifting or falling.
• Fires on ships out at sea are always hazardous and can lead to illness, injury, and death.
• Collisions as these huge ships leave and enter busy shipping channels, and ports are also a concern.

Hapag-Lloyd Accidents

Hapag-Lloyd has faced several accidents over the years, some more high profile than others. And not all are directly related to shipping or the sea.

Airplane Crash

For instance, in 2000, a Hapag-Lloyd passenger plane flying from Crete in Greece to Germany crashed in Vienna. The aircraft had run short of fuel and attempted an emergency landing in Vienna but ran out of fuel and crashed short of the runway.

Fortunately, no passengers or crew were killed, but crew members were found guilty of not complying with regulations set by Hapag-Lloyd.

The explanation was that the employees were under great stress from being overworked, which could be the company’s fault. This led to poor decision-making and a lack of awareness of the hazards and seriousness of the situation.

Suez Canal Collision

Another noteworthy incident for Hapag-Lloyd was the collision of one of its container vessels, the Colombo Express, in the Suez Canal in 2014.

The ship collided with Maersk’s Tanjong after losing control. The Hapag-Lloyd ship received a large dent in its hull, and the Tanjong lost three containers overboard.

Reports after the incident stated that the Colombo Express had been trying to overtake the other ship as they both exited the Canal heading south. This caused the operator to lose control of the rudder, which went hard left.

The incident luckily left no maritime workers injured, resulting in no oil or fuel spills that could have damaged the ecosystem. The damage to the ship, however, was significant.

At the time, the Colombo Express was one of the world’s largest container ships, yet this kind of collision could damage even such huge ships.

Maritime Workers and Maritime Law

If workers were injured in an accident like the Suez Canal collision, they would have rights under maritime law to seek compensation from Hapag-Lloyd. Some of these laws are as ancient as seafaring travels and trade are.

Maintenance and cure, for instance, is the expectation that a seaman injured on the job will be provided for financially until he can return to work. The employer is responsible for his maintenance, living expenses, and cure medical expenses.

Other maritime laws are more modern, such as the Jones Act, which applies to seamen. It allows workers to sue an employer that is negligent in an accident.

The compensation these injured workers are entitled to receive can help pay for mounting medical bills, lost earnings, and even lost future earnings if an injury is severe enough to limit work prospects for the future. Even the loved ones of seamen killed on the job are entitled to these rights.

If you are a seaman or a maritime worker, like a longshoreman, you have rights under maritime law to protect yourself when you are injured or your dependents if your job leads to your death.

The best way to ensure you get all the compensation you are entitled to is to rely on the professional advice of an experienced maritime lawyer.

Maritime companies may try limiting how much money they provide injured workers, so never agree to anything until your lawyer has advised you. Let this professional guide your next steps and help you get everything you need to get back on your feet and care for your family.