Shipping Terms

Quotations

A quotation is built from the information you give us, so it stands or falls with that information.

• It applies to the route, mode, cargo description, weights and dimensions stated on it.
• It states its own validity period, what is included and what is excluded.
• Freight rates, carrier surcharges and exchange rates move. Once the validity on a quotation has passed, the rate is re-confirmed before booking.
• Cargo is weighed and measured again at acceptance. Where the actual weight or volume differs from the figures quoted, the shipment is re-rated on the actual ones.

Booking and cargo readiness

A booking starts when we confirm it to you in writing, with the carrier, the routing and the charges as agreed. To hold that booking we need the pickup address, the ready date and any handling the cargo needs - space held against a date the cargo cannot meet has to be released.

What you tell us, we act on

Documents are prepared from what you and your supplier give us, and nobody can verify the contents of a sealed carton afterwards. A description that does not match the cargo is the single most common reason a shipment is held.

For every booking we need:

• A true and complete description of the goods, with the classification you use for them.
• A commercial invoice and a packing list that agree with the cargo and with each other.
• Correct shipper and consignee details, including the contact who will clear the cargo at destination.
• Any licence, permit, certificate or registration the goods need to leave India or to enter the destination country.

Dangerous, restricted and prohibited goods

Dangerous goods, batteries, magnets, aerosols, chemicals and anything otherwise restricted must be declared in writing before a booking is made, with the documentation that mode of transport requires. Undeclared dangerous goods are refused, and any cost arising from an undeclared or misdeclared shipment stays with the party that declared it.

Customs, duties and charges

Export and import formalities follow the rules of the countries involved. Examinations, holds and queries are decided by the authorities rather than by us, and we keep you informed while they run.

• Duties, taxes and destination charges are payable by whichever party the agreed Incoterm makes responsible for them.
• Storage, demurrage and detention, where they arise, are passed on as they are billed to us by the carrier or the terminal.
• Changes after booking - a new routing, a new consignee, a cancelled pickup - can carry the carrier's own charges.

Insurance

Cargo insurance is not included in a freight quotation unless that quotation says so. If you want the cargo covered, tell us before it moves and we will come back with what can be arranged for that shipment.

If something goes wrong

Liability for loss, damage or delay, and the limits that apply to it, are not set by this page. They follow the contract of carriage the cargo travels under - the airway bill or the bill of lading - and the trading conditions we confirm with you in writing for your shipment.

Tell us as soon as you notice a problem, and keep the packaging, the documents and any photographs until the claim is settled. A claim is only as strong as the evidence kept with it.

What this website can do

The forms on this site are a demonstration of how the service will work; they do not create a booking or a shipment record. Every live shipment is booked, documented and updated by our team directly.