Piracy attacks have more than doubled, creating headaches for marine insurers.

A report by the International Maritime Bureau’s Piracy Reporting Centre shows that in the first half of the year 240 pirate attacks took place, compared to 114 in the first six months of last year.

The bureau attributes the rise almost entirely to increased activity in the Gulf of Aden and off the east coast of Somalia, and says violence against crews continues to increase.

Lloyd’s says piracy is testing traditional market practices, especially the “general average” process, where a shipowner whose vessel has been hijacked seeks compensation from different parties, including insurers.

While there were no attacks reported off Somalia in June, the centre says this was due to heavy weather and monsoons that have continued into this month.

Clive Stoddart, Executive Director of Aon’s kidnap and ransom team, anticipates pirate activity will now resume.

“The marine market continues to cover traditional marine risks and is now charging for the increased war exposure in the region,” he said.

“Even though forms of piracy have been in existence forever, the cost and complexity of the negotiation and delivery of ransoms to Somalia is new to the traditional marine insurance market.”