A bill of lading is a document that serves as a receipt for the goods being transported. It lists details about the type of goods, quantity, weight, destination and consignee. These are very important documents that are used in international trade.
There are various types of bills of lading depending on their purpose and how they are issued:
COMBINED TRANSPORT BILL OF LADING. This document, in common use in today’s container traffic, covers the intermodal ‘door-to-door’ transportation of containers - i.e., from the premises of the manufacturer to the premises of the receiver - at the carrier’s responsibility and by means of his own organization (carrier haulage). In addition to the port of loading and to the port of discharge, this b/l in fact also contains the indications 'from (through transport)' i.e., the place where the land pre-carriage starts, and 'final destination (through transport)' i.e. the place of delivery after on-carriage from the port of discharge.
In addition to strictly pertaining to this kind of transportation, this b/l, like all those covering the carriage of containers, includes specific clauses to certify that:
- the goods have been described by the shipper (all particulars furnished by the shipper, carriers make no representation);
- the containers have been stuffed, and the packages counted on the shipper's account (shippers stow load and count);
- the containers are believed to contain the goods described by the shipper (said to contain).
The carrier is, in fact, unable to declare that he has received goods of a particular kind or to certify their condition. He can only declare that he has received a specific container identified by a particular serial number and a seal.
The land section of the transportation may be provided by the carrier (carrier haulage) through his own logistic organization. The carrier becomes liable, against adequate coverage, for the custody of the goods from when the stuffed container is withdrawn from the seller's/ manufacturer's premises, depot or factory, until it is delivered at its final destination.
The haulage from the depot or factory may also be effected by the shipper (merchant haulage). In such cases, the carrier's responsibility begins when the stuffed container is delivered to the port terminal.
The carrier can in no way be held responsible for damages, faults, or shortage of the goods loaded in the container, should the seal - affixed by the same carrier when he withdraws the container from the seller’s/manufacturer’s premises, or when it arrives at the port terminal - appear to have been tampered with.
The seal is in fact a protective, certifying device, signifying the carrier’s responsibility towards both the customs and the receiver. It consists of a lock - there are various types - which once affixed to the door handles of the container cannot be opened unless broken.
The seal is marked by a progressive number, shown in the bill of lading and in the manifest together with the number of the containers, and provides evidence of the integrity of the goods contained therein as delivered by the shipper. The seal is affixed to the container by the driver of the truck when taking delivery of the container at the place of acceptance.
When it is the shipper who is to arrange for the haulage of the container, at his care and expense (merchant haulage), then the carrier's seal is affixed to the container when entering the terminal.
Quite often the shipper, too, affixes his own seal to the container. However, only the carrier’s seal constitutes proof that the carrier has taken every measure to safeguard the carriage before, during and after the sea carriage; and the arrival of the container at its destination in sound condition exempts the carrier from any further responsibility.
In the case of FCL shipments, where containers are stuffed and unstuffed by one single shipper and/or receiver, the b/l is claused 'CY/CY' (from container yard to container yard) i.e., the area where the containers are stored waiting for shipment or, after discharging, waiting for withdrawal by receivers.
In LCL shipments, where containers are stuffed and unstuffed by the carrier, the b/l is claused CFS/CFS (from Container Freight Station at loading port to Container Freight Station at discharging port).
RECEIVED FOR SHIPMENT B/L. A received for shipment b/l may be issued when the container has been delivered to the carrier's terminal. By issuing a document of this kind, the carrier acknowledges that a stuffed container was delivered to him (by a shipper), pending shipment.
The b/l shows the wording ‘‘received for shipment in apparent external good order ...” which indicates that the carrier retains the container under his control and responsibility in the conditions existing at the time of its delivery to the terminal.
This b/l may not be endorsed on board or shipped on board, as is usually requested by the shipper to comply with the expiry date of the letter of credit, unless the container has been actually loaded into the carrying vessel.
PORT TO PORT B/L. This b/l covers the direct carriage of the container from the port of loading to the port of destination.
THROUGH BILL OF LADING. This b/l refers to the through transportation of a container from the port of loading to a port of destination not served directly by the carrier but under his responsibility.
The carrier is also responsible for the transhipment and on-carriage of the container to its final destination by another carrier of his choice, with whom the shipper has no connection.
The on-carriage from the port of call of the carrier entrusted with the shipment to the port of final destination is a matter of agreement between the two carriers.
The second carrier (the on-carrier) will issue to the first carrier a not-negotiable ‘service' bill of lading to cover the on-carriage.
The original through bill of lading, which corresponds to the prescriptions of the letter of credit, issued by the first carrier, remains valid for the withdrawal of the goods by the receiver from the agent of the second carrier.
HOUSE BILL OF LADING. This is a bill of lading issued by a freight forwarder or by a Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC), ship operators acting as carriers without having a ship manned or managed by themselves. This b/l is exactly the same as, or very similar to, a bill of lading issued by a physical ship-owner. However, the ship nominated therein is not owned by the party issuing the b/l.
The freight forwarder or NVOCC acts at the same time as
a) the named carrier who takes delivery of the cargo from the shipper;
b) the shipper in relation to the physical carrier.
The house b/l contains the data supplied by the shipper for his negotiations, in conformity with the letter of credit, when needed.
The freight forwarder or the NVOCC will ensure that his risks are covered with a port to port bill of lading issued by the physical sea carrier. This b/l will not conform to the credit nor be negotiable and will identify as the “shipper" the carrier’s agent at the port of shipment and as “receiver” the carrier's agent at the port of discharge.
On the basis of the port to port b/l issued by the physical carrier, the agent of the freight forwarder, or of the NVOCC who has issued the negotiable bill of lading, will take delivery of the goods at the port of destination. He will then re-deliver them when the receiver named by the shipper presents him with the b/l as indicated by the credit and, therefore, effectively negotiable.
SERVICE BILL OF LADING. The service b/l is issued by a carrier 'X' upon request of another carrier 'Y' who, so as not to disappoint an important customer/shipper, must needs forward a consignment of goods that has, for example, been shortshipped by mistake or arrived late.
The service b/l will show as "shipper" the agent of the carrier 'X' at the port of shipment, and as "receiver" the agent of the same carrier at the port of destination (this b/l will, therefore, be not negotiable, not having been made out in accordance with the terms of the credit).
Whoever is entitled to do so will take delivery of the goods from this latter agent by presenting the original negotiable bill of lading issued by carrier 'Y', who is particularly concerned to see to it that no claim for delayed shipment of the goods is lodged with his customer.
A service b/l must be claused to show that the goods may be redelivered against the presentation of an original b/l issued by carrier 'Y'.
MARINE/OCEAN BILL OF LADING. As provided by rule 23 of UCP 500, a Marine/Ocean b/l covers the carriage of goods from a port of shipment to a port of destination. Such a b/l is accepted y shipping companies in compliance with letters of credit, although a combined carriage should, strictly speaking, be covered by a combined transport b/l.
Marine/Ocean bills of lading are in fact typical of conventional shipping. Quite often a shipper requiring this type of b/l wishes to make sure that the document is issued by a well known and established carrier/shipowner (a physical carrier/shipowner) and not by a shipping operator (freight forwarder or NVOCC - i.e. one who is not himself the owner or disponent owner of the ship nominated in the b/l, but avails himself of the services of a physical shipowner and possibly issues a b/l without adequate insurance coverage).
