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⚓ '''General average''' is a centuries-old principle of [[Definition:Marine insurance | marine insurance]] and maritime law under which all parties to a sea voyage — the shipowner, cargo owners, and sometimes the charterer — share proportionally in the financial sacrifice made to save the vessel, its cargo, or crew from a common peril. When a ship's master jettisons cargo, incurs extraordinary expenses at a port of refuge, or takes other deliberate measures to preserve the venture, a general average is declared, triggering a formal loss-sharing process that predates modern insurance by millennia.

📋 Once declared, an average adjuster — a specialized professional — calculates each party's contributing value and allocates the sacrifice accordingly. Cargo owners cannot reclaim their goods at the destination port until they post a [[Definition:General average guarantee | general average guarantee]] or [[Definition:General average deposit | cash deposit]] as security for their share. An insurer that has written [[Definition:Cargo insurance | cargo insurance]] covering general average will typically issue the guarantee on behalf of its [[Definition:Policyholder | policyholder]] and later reimburse the assessed contribution, provided the policy's terms are met. The adjustment process can take years on complex casualties, with costs running into hundreds of millions of dollars — as demonstrated by high-profile incidents involving container mega-ships.

🌍 Despite its ancient origins, general average remains highly relevant to modern [[Definition:Hull insurance | hull]] and cargo [[Definition:Underwriter | underwriters]]. Large container-ship fires and groundings have produced some of the most expensive general average declarations in history, testing insurers' [[Definition:Reserve | reserves]] and straining relationships between carriers and cargo interests. Critics argue the doctrine is outdated and disproportionately burdens cargo owners, yet it continues to be codified in the York-Antwerp Rules and enforced worldwide. For [[Definition:Marine insurer | marine insurers]], the ability to model and price general average exposure — including the risk of escalating salvage and towage costs — is an essential part of underwriting ocean-going risks.

'''Related concepts:'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Definition:Marine insurance]]
* [[Definition:Cargo insurance]]
* [[Definition:Hull insurance]]
* [[Definition:Average adjuster]]
* [[Definition:York-Antwerp Rules]]
* [[Definition:Particular average]]
{{Div col end}}

Definition:General average - Revision history

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