The collapse of a major Baltimore bridge and its aftermath could result in the largest-ever marine insurance claim, according to Lloyd’s of London’s chairman on Thursday.

Following the collision of a massive cargo ship with the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, analysts predicted that insured losses from the accident would be in the single-digit billions. Six individuals were presumed deceased.

“We’re beginning to deploy resources in anticipation of this being a very substantial claim for the industry. And for the Lloyd’s market, it’s going to take some time for for the complexity of the situation to unravel,” Bruce Carnegie-Brown told CNBC.

“So, [it’s] very early days to call a number. I don’t at this point anticipate that it’s outside our realistic disaster scenario planning. It feels like a a very substantial loss, potentially the largest-ever marine insured loss, but not outside parameters that we plan for.”

Lloyd’s is one of the world’s largest reinsurers, which provide financial protection for insurers that are unable to absorb large losses.

Carnegie-Brown stated that, while there would undoubtedly be claims for the ship, cargo, and bridge, “second-order impacts” would become “substantial.”

“A lot of business is going to be interrupted, supply chains are going to be interrupted by ships that are both trapped inside the port and of course, ships that were trying to gain access to the port that no longer can, and those second order effects will take some time to work through,” he said.

Baltimore is the eleventh largest port in the United States and the busiest for the import and export of automobiles and light vehicles. Supply chain operators are scrambling to mitigate the impact on trade.

Morningstar DBRS analysts said in a Wednesday note that insured losses might range from $2 billion to $4 billion, depending on how long the port remains stopped. Such a price would exceed the current record, which was paid out following the capsize of the Costa Concordia cruise liner in 2012.

Several insurance policies are likely to be triggered, including marine liability and hull, property, cargo, and business interruption.

“Despite the hefty insured losses, we expect they will remain manageable for the insurance industry as they will involve a large and diversified pool of well capitalized insurers and reinsurers,” Morningstar said.

Barclays estimates the potential insurance claims at $1 billion to $3 billion.

The Singapore-flagged container vessel was rented by Danish shipping giant Maersk to deliver cargo for its customers, but it was operated by charter vessel operator Synergy Group. According to early reports, the spacecraft lost power before impacting the bridge.

Authorities in Singapore and the United States will conduct investigations to determine legal liability, as part of a complex procedure that might take months or years.

David Osler, shipping and commodities chief analyst at Lloyd’s List Intelligence, told CNBC earlier this week that Maersk will have liability coverage as the charterer, not as the vessel’s operator.

Several worldwide automakers have stated that they are examining the impact of the disaster on their operations and expect to have to reroute trade, which would lengthen some delivery timelines. Many others say they don’t expect any serious disruptions right now.

In a Wednesday note, Barclays analysts claimed that German automakers BMW, Mercedes, and Volkswagen are the most vulnerable, as European imports accounted for 40% to 50% of U.S. sales recently.

BMW stated that the event will have no impact on material supplies for its U.S. factory, and that the business was in contact with its logistics partner about imports. Volkswagen stated that its port activities on the coastal side of the bridge would be unaffected, but that trucking delays were possible.

Mercedes stated that more entry ports, such as Brunswick, Georgia, would help alleviate import demands.

“While there will be near term disruptions in auto imports and exports, I’m confident that Customs and Border Protection, regional ports, and terminal operators will work closely with the auto industry to identify optimal shipping alternatives until the Port of Baltimore resumes vessel operations,” Mitch Merriam, vice president of borders and maritime security at K2 Security Screening, said.

“The Port of Baltimore is going to suffer in the short term, but plans are already underway to divert and accommodate the additional traffic at other east coast ports, including Philadelphia, Norfolk, Savannah and Charleston. All of them can handle cars and light trucks.”

The port processes a variety of items, including sugar and gypsum, and is used by companies including Home Depot, Ikea, and Amazon.

(Adapted from CNBC.com)

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