Category: Marine cargo insurance · Reviewed by the Apex broking team · Last reviewed 2026-08-21
Category: Marine cargo insurance Also known as: ICC (B), Institute B clauses, cargo clauses B Related concepts: ICC A, B and C compared, marine cargo insurance
The Institute Cargo Clauses are the standard sets of conditions on which marine cargo is insured in the London market and internationally, published in three graded versions — A, B and C. The B clauses are the intermediate set. Unlike the A clauses, which insure on an all-risks basis, the B clauses are a named-perils wording: cargo is covered only against loss or damage attributable to the perils the clauses list, and the burden of proving that a listed peril caused the loss rests on the insured.
At category level, the B clauses cover two broad groups of perils. The first is the major-casualty group also found in the C clauses: fire and explosion; the vessel being stranded, grounded, sunk or capsized; overturning or derailment of a land conveyance; collision; discharge of cargo at a port of distress; general average sacrifice; and jettison. The second is a middle band that the C clauses do not carry, including certain natural events such as earthquake, volcanic eruption and lightning, the entry of sea, lake or river water into the vessel, hold, container or place of storage, cargo washed overboard, and total loss of a package lost overboard or dropped during loading or unloading.
Like the other Institute sets, the B clauses carry the standard framework of exclusions — among them wilful misconduct, ordinary leakage and wear, insufficient packing, inherent vice, delay, and the war and strikes exclusions — and the usual transit, general average and claims provisions. The strikes exclusion can be bought back with the Institute Strikes Clauses (Cargo).
Because cover is limited to the listed perils, losses that the all-risks A clauses would pick up — theft and pilferage, non-delivery, rough handling, rainwater damage and other accidental causes not on the list — generally fall outside the B clauses unless specifically added back. Malicious damage is also excluded under B and is commonly reinstated by an additional clause where required.
The B clauses appear where full all-risks cover is either unnecessary or uneconomic for the cargo concerned, but the buyer still wants protection beyond bare casualty perils — for example some bulk or semi-bulk commodities, cargoes of lower value per unit, or trades where the sales contract or a financing bank requires cover at least on B terms. In practice much general cargo is written on the A clauses, and B occupies a narrower middle ground; the choice between the three sets is a question of cargo type, trade and premium, discussed further in the comparison entry.
The letter on the certificate decides both the breadth of cover and who has to prove what after a loss. A cargo owner insured on B terms must connect the damage to a named peril; on A terms the position is reversed and the insurer must bring the loss within an exclusion. Buying on B to save premium is a legitimate choice for the right cargo, but it should be a deliberate one, made with the cargo’s real exposures in view.
This entry is part of the Apex Insurance Wiki. Last reviewed 2026-08-21. Next review: 2027-02-21.
Apex Insurance Brokers Limited. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, FRN 724952. Registered in England and Wales, Companies House 07014570. This entry provides general information about UK insurance concepts and is not regulated advice. Consult your insurance broker on your specific position.
Apex Insurance Brokers serves UK professional services firms and commercial businesses. Call 0117 325 0027, email info@apexinsurancebrokers.co.uk, or request a quotation.
Get a quote