indicate "because of treuisfers. Assuming that the registered 

 vessel population in New England and California ports closely 

 represents the vessels operating from the same ports, net losses, 

 i.e., newly built minus lost vessels, should be augmented by the 

 net transfers to the area minus transfers from these areas. Net 

 transfers from New England and California may have been substantial 

 during the years 1950-54, especially if transfers are measured in 

 terms of tonnage . 



The above findings lead to a number of observations vdiich may 

 affect the insurability of commercial fishing vessels in the long 

 run. First, actual decline in the niamber of vessels in New England 

 indicates a shrinkage in the number of insui-able risks and an aging 

 population, both of which further aggravate the hull insurance 

 problem. Second, the fact that newly built vessels in all three 

 eireas were, on the average, larger than lost vessels may somewhat 

 offset the previous effects in New Englajid and may improve the 

 insurability of vessels for hull insurance in the other two areas. 

 The observation may be true to the extent that newly built vessels 

 are better risks than lost vessels. Finally, newly built, larger 

 vessels may further depersonalize owner-crew relations and may 

 adversely affect the insiu-ability of vessels for protection and 

 indemnity insurance. This development may be especially important 

 in California. 



These findings clearly show how the hull insurance problem and 

 business conditions are tightly dovetailed. First, it is evident 

 that during 1950- 5^ business conditions were less favorable and 

 consequently the insurance problem more acute if not almost a 

 crisis in New England. Second, the decrease in total capacity 

 (vessels-tonu:'2c ) clearly indicates that the Nev; England industry 

 is undergoing.; a serious period of postwar adjustment. Reduction 

 of excess capacity is likely to continue as long as adverse 

 marketing conditions prevail for the domestic fishing industry. 

 Third, since it was sho^m that unfavorable economic conditions 

 adversely ajrect the insurability of commercial fishing vessels, 

 the insurance problem is likely to continue until the New England 

 fishing industry haa reached a new equilibrium between the supply 

 of and demand for its fishery products. Finally, if similar 

 economic conditions develop in the other two areas, the hull 

 insurance problem is likely to become more serious there. 



4- The insurance problem and the vessel owner's business 

 outlook . How the vessel owner understands his hull insurance 

 problem has been discussed extensively in Chapter II. No more 

 need be said here except that the vessel owner has a good under- 

 steuiding of the close association between economic conditions in 

 the industry and the insurance problem. It is not surprising that 



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