Questions related to shipping and freight you always wanted to ask

SEEK – LEARN – KNOW – GROW is the motto of this blog, which is dedicated to the sharing and spreading of shipping and freight knowledge including the asking and answering of questions relating to shipping and freight..

NOTHING can be learnt without asking questions.. We would not have the development, technology and luxuries we have today if inventors and pioneers didn’t ask questions..

Questions like “why did the apple fall down in a straight line and not go sideways or upwards” have led to several important discoveries and theories.. 🙂

In shipping and freight also there are several frequently asked questions.. But apart from these FAQs, I am pretty sure there are several questions that YOU always wanted to ask..

If you have any questions you have always wanted to ask or things you always wanted to know about Shipping, Freight, Maritime, Logistics, Supply Chain and Trade but never got a chance or didn’t know where and who to ask, here is your chance..

Simply ask your question using the comments form below and I will do my best to answer the same or find an answer for you..

30 COMMENTS

Justin Oliver McCarthy August 30, 2021 At 1:33 PM

My organisation is developing a “shippers’ association”.

As such, I understand that we will be able to negotiate “NVOCC SERVICE ARRANGEMENTS”, “SERVICE CONTRACTS”, and “NVOCC NEGOTIATED RATE ARRANGEMENTS” which are defined by FCR Title 46, Chapter IV, Subchapter B (Regulations affecting ocean shipping in foreign commerce), Parts 530, 531, and 532.

For the avoidance of doubt, Part 545 of the aforementioned regulations “authorizes ocean common carriers and agreements between or among ocean common carriers to enter into a service contract with a shippers’ association” … and “prohibits carriers from unreasonably refusing to deal or negotiate.”

QUESTION 1: Is Part 545 meant to include all types of the negotiated contracts (ie; “NVOCC SERVICE ARRANGEMENTS”, “SERVICE CONTRACTS”, and “NVOCC NEGOTIATED RATE ARRANGEMENTS”), OR is Part 545 restricted to only “SERVICE CONRACTS”, stricto sensu, defined in Part 530 ?

My confusion here results from the fact that Part 545 mentions only “SERVICE CONRACTS”, HOVEVER, Parts 531 & 532 which govern “NVOCC SERVICE ARRANGEMENTS”, and “NVOCC NEGOTIATED RATE ARRANGEMENTS” both specifically include “shippers’ association” in their scope.

QUESTION 2: I am having difficulty understanding the fundamental differences between “NVOCC SERVICE ARRANGEMENTS”, “SERVICE CONTRACTS”, and “NVOCC NEGOTIATED RATE ARRANGEMENTS”. What are the practical differences between these 3 types of contracts ?

Any enlightenment here would be sincerely appreciated.

jackluke362 December 7, 2020 At 2:41 PM

hey very good and nice blog relates to shipment keep writing

Nimra arooj May 8, 2020 At 9:35 AM

sir
please guide me.
how can i become a best export executive in my company.
its my start in this job.

Masud November 23, 2019 At 7:27 AM

Dear Sir,

Can you please explain what will happen to the cargo once shipment had been cancelled?
Will it affect consignee? Does we need to pay certain fine/fees to shipping liner?

Please advise.

Regards Masud

Masud November 23, 2019 At 7:23 AM

Dear Sir,
Please advise if a cargo is found with less quantities of goods against the ordered quantities at the port by C & F agent of buyer, what steps should be followed at this stage to overcome the problem?

Thanks and regards,
Masud

Masud November 23, 2019 At 7:12 AM

To me, if there are official holidays then it should have been considered buyer and seller point of view before the shipment. In this case, C & f agent of buyer is responsible to pay on behalf of buyer and to get reimbursement from agent. Secondly, if buyer can not abandon cargo in receiving from port since buyer is already in agreement with seller/shipping line. Opinion of author/other readers’
would be highly appreciated. Best regards, Masud

mohamed imchichi September 17, 2019 At 6:31 PM

we shipped a 40′ reefer partly full of Pasteque fruit from Tangier Morocco to Salalah Oman. The consignee intends to take delivery of the cargo asap to make good profit as it is seasonal fruit and he has already got firms orders from retail sellers. However the consignee could not get his cargo shortly after vessel arrival due to of official holidays and consequently decided to abandon the cargo. Carrier/Terminal are requesting shippers to pay for outstanding demurrage and power connection charges. Who is liable for paying demurrage at POD and what happens when cargo is abandoned by consignee. are the shippers still liable. what about Lien clause in Bill of Lading. Thank you very much for your valuable support. Mohamed

Nuraishah July 27, 2019 At 4:04 AM

Hello Sir,

Please advice how to be prepared for increasing tariff in shipment for IMO 2020?

Does the tariff for most demurrage / detention / Ocean Freight and etc is increasing per month?

And in your opinion, does it normal for almost each month tariff is increasing.

Please advice.

ali July 24, 2019 At 9:16 AM

sir I get information about container clearing from India to Algeria no send direct to Algeria i want send through third party from Dubai which document required please inform me

faizel July 13, 2019 At 7:09 PM

Good Day Sir.

tariff amendment /TDN ‘s in the republic include articles and relate this to the legislation regarding key sections of legislation from the act pertaining to the regulation of international trade , also state which section of the act this will be found in.

My question for an assignment

Mohammad Rafeeque Mulinja July 10, 2019 At 8:50 AM

Good Day Sir,

As a forwarder or NVOCC agent to issue HBL, is there any requirment to register with any International body.

Clips July 9, 2019 At 7:43 AM

Hi may I know if custom inspection the container at Rotterdam, will this charges bear by shipper since the inspection is at port of loading Rotterdam.

Thanks
Clips

Nii Amu July 8, 2019 At 6:59 PM

The expansion of a port as i learnt in basic maritime studies, is supposed to lead to the increase of trade within that port state, which by inference presuppose that the work of other stakeholders that will complement the trade cannot be under-estimated. if this premise is right, why then are private container terminals going out of business as a result of the commencement of operation by Meridian Port Service in Ghana upon completion of the first phase of the port expansion project?

Nuraishah July 8, 2019 At 3:29 AM

Hi Sir,

Can you please explain what will happen to the cargo once shipment had been cancelled?
Will it affect consignee? Does we need to pay certain fine to liner?

- Hariesh Manaadiar July 8, 2019 At 6:42 PM
  
  Not clear about your question.. If shipment is cancelled then there won’t be any cargo..
Vishal Vasant Ghanvat July 6, 2019 At 9:09 PM

Good say Sir,

Noticed that sometimes vessel registered under different country, vessel’s flag is different & classification society is also from different country. How this works?

Thanks in advance!

Mo July 6, 2019 At 4:54 PM

How is logistics in Thailand. How can start freight forwarding.

Zarksis B. Munshi July 6, 2019 At 11:05 AM

Dear sir,
Can a forwarding company in India execute a 3rd country shipment ( for eg Zibex, Germany gets an order from Fujimo, Japan. Zibex Germany inturn places and order on their subsidiary Zibex India to supply to Fujimi, Japan) as follows:-
* MAWB from Indian forwarder to their counterpart in Japan.
* HAWB1 from Zibex, India to Zibex, Germany with origin as Mumbai and destination as Tokyo
* HAWB 2 from Zibex, Germany to Fujimo, Japan with origin as Mumbai and destination as Tokyo.
Thanks and best regards,
Zarksis B. Munshi

Pramod G.Pandey July 6, 2019 At 6:39 AM

Hello Sir,
I have couple of questions like;

1. What according to you is the future of Shipping & Logistics in India ?

2. Which one course would you advise which has universal existence or any specific book to read to have in-depth knowledge of this industry ?

Although, your blogs have been a great help to know about the industry still if you could suggest

Pramod G. Pandey

Kühnel Peter July 5, 2019 At 3:43 PM

How can I find the best an experienced sales for global door2door offers?

Kühnel Peter July 5, 2019 At 3:40 PM

Really good initiative – I am looking forward

Shivam Shukla July 5, 2019 At 1:16 PM

Please elaborate custom procedure for aircargo.

Mhd Okasha July 5, 2019 At 11:18 AM

What is the difference between Supply Chain activities and Logistics Services Provider…???

Avinash Ayilliath July 5, 2019 At 10:30 AM

Can you Elaborate on the difference and various activities between Shipper, Seller, Consolidator, Freight Forwarder, CHA. Also, the activities when it involves all of them together for one or bulk shipments.

l July 5, 2019 At 8:03 AM

Hello

Many times Fright Forwarder give us Freight amount for the Destination let say X to Y and we confirm that on basis of other quotations.

But the main question is when Shipping line issue the BL, they mention the Prepaid Freight amount on it in USD. It always differs what we actually paid to or agreed with our Freight Forwarder.

So is it Freight forwarder who charges a lot from seller or there is other reason?

Anil Upadhyay July 5, 2019 At 7:37 AM

Hello Hariesh,

We have a encountered with big problem, where there is no solution till date.

DG IMO Cargo , UN 1062 , Class 2.3

Maersk/Safmarine charging DG Surcharges USD 5000/- which is super high to accept and not feasible.

IMO Surcharge for UN 1062/2.3, Methyl Bromide

1. Hamburg Sud – $ 100 ( using Maersk Vessels )
2. MSC – $250
3. CMA/ANL/APL – S150
4. Hapag – $200
5. ONE – $200
6. OOCL – $200
7. KMTC – $100
8. ZIM/GSL – $ 200
9. HMM – $ 150

We had discussion with regional , national and even with HQ but till date no reduction on surcharge.

We are shipping our cargo on other line on routine but the question is why #1 carrier not listening to this problem.

It is like challenging to a particular problem where we need to find out a way to get it done.

We want to start with Maersk line but we see no way.

Any guidance , way out , lead will be helpful.

Thanks,
Anil Upadhyay

Ramnath July 5, 2019 At 6:59 AM

Please advise main difference between warehouse & Distribution point as both have the same purpose except that Distribution point is also referred to as stop gap storage point

christopherjohnstonjakarta July 5, 2019 At 5:58 AM

Hi! thanks for taking my question.

I was recently informed of a transaction where a clean LC was not issued by the buyer. This means that the wording in the LC contained ‘weasel’ words such as “to the buyer’s satisfaction”, “to an acceptable level”. This means that the buyer could hold the seller hostage by claiming that he was somehow not satisfied.The bank then would not release the funds.

At the same time, the shipping company withheld the B/L because the buyer owed the shipping company money. This is totally unethical; the captain should not use the B/L as leverage to go after previous debts totally unrelated to the ongoing transaction, and yet this is what happened. The seller thus could not clear the LC and had no B/L over the cargo he sold. disaster!

Are these common occurrences?

Mohammed Robiul Alam July 5, 2019 At 5:31 AM

Thanks a lot for arranging such a helping initiative. Actually I don’t have a specific question, rather I am really interested clear my idea about transshipment, it would be better if you guide me to something to read about it or an interactive session with you would do a lot help. Thanks.

Balasubramanian July 5, 2019 At 4:22 AM

When to use Dispatch vs Despatch – why people still tend to use Despatch