Top Lloyd's of London marine war insurers have told brokers they'll stop selling war cover for Saudi-linked cargoes in the Red Sea after Houthi attacks on two Saudi tankers, and some are preparing to cancel existing policies.
The exclusion covers any ship with "Saudi touchpoints," including foreign-flagged vessels that previously called at Saudi ports.
Saudi Arabia is now being lumped in with the US, UK, and Israel as high-risk jurisdictions — a serious blow given Riyadh's growing reliance on Red Sea exports via Yanbu (up to 5 mn b/d) while the Strait of Hormuz stays largely closed.
Several Saudi cargoes are already U-turning around the Cape of Good Hope, others are switching off GPS to sneak through Bab al-Mandab, and the Houthis say the "naval blockade" targets only Saudi shipping.
Source: FT