• 03-09-2021

Risks and Liabilities of a Freight Forwarder

Many individuals and firms rely on everyday goods export and import. International shipping can boost a company's profitability by giving it access to more customers or allowing it to buy goods or raw materials at a lower price. However, freight forwarding restrictions, paperwork, manpower, and other considerations can be overwhelming, and most organizations are unprepared to deal with the sophisticated logistics of such a task. Partnering with freight forwarding companies in UAE, who manage shipments as well as the inconveniences connected with the shipping process, can help businesses solve this problem.

Freight forwarding services: What freight forwarders in Dubai do

Shipping companies make sure about perfect planning, packing, and delivery of any product from one point to other. The goods will be transported using any of the transportation mediums including roadways, waterways, airways, and railways. Efficiency and coordination are important for the timely delivery of products across the world through any of these transport mediums.

Companies that do freight forwarding in Dubai will ensure that everything is happening on time without any faults. Shipping companies with freight forwarding services are responsible for the secure delivery of the goods they get assigned with. Freight forwarding companies in Dubai like SkyOcean offers the best service to transport any goods anywhere.

It is a principle of freight forwarding to securely deliver the goods from A to B at cost-effective rates. Experts in the transportation field only can do the efficient work of freight forwarding while making money for the company. A freight forwarder has to be fluent with all the regulations related to shipping among several authorities across the places their service is being served.

Duties of a freight forwarder

Freight forwarders in Dubai have the responsibility to do the stressful job of coordinating the overall shipping activity. They arrange a secure way of transportation for the customer by choosing the best medium. Freight forwarding services provided by a shipping company differ following several factors.

These factors include how big the company is alongside the transportation service they have. The location of the company and the size of the goods also matter in freight forwarding.

An experienced freight forwarder will always stay updated with the timing of all the ports they are connected to and the price rates. This way, they can avail a cost-effective and fast shipping experience for their customers. They arrange and compile all the submitted and required documents for the shipping of goods.

Furthermore, they manage the transportation over every medium including sea and air across any country. Besides, they ensure that the customer is satisfied by fulfilling their preferences. At the same time, they negotiate with carrier services on behalf of the customer for rates.

Freight forwarders arrange inland goods transportation - aside from the duties like billing and collecting documents related to customs and ports. A qualified freight forwarder needs some exceptional skills to do their work without fail. Communication skill is significant to deal with various customers and whoever comes in between the process of shipping. Freight forwarding companies in UAE have workers with the best organizing skills and teamwork.

When a freight forwarder accepts a contract they expose themselves to a number of specific risks and obligations.

It is difficult to determine the breadth of a freight forwarder's liability in a dispute. When damage is caused in transit and the transporter does not wish to make a claim, the shipper will attempt to recover from all involved parties in the carriage of their products. Various entities, such as ocean, inland, and air carriers, warehousemen, and the freight forwarder, may be in possession of items throughout transportation.

A freight forwarder's obligation is a difficult topic to describe solely on paper because each instance is unique. A freight forwarder's liability is inextricably linked to the freight forwarder's position towards their client and the third party in the obligation. The roles that a freight forwarder plays impact its liability. The scope of coverage and forms necessary on the freight forwarder's insurance policy will be determined by these functions.

The liabilities and obligations of freight forwarding companies in UAE when working on a contract for goods transportation from point A to point B could include, but are not limited to:

1. Cargo liabilities

The freight forwarder is not liable for any damage to the products that the principal has experienced as a result of the goods being inadequately packaged. He is not accountable, however, unless he told his client/principal about the package's flaws. He is not accountable if he informs his client of the need to correct the package's flaws in a timely manner. Freight forwarder is likewise not accountable if he corrects package flaws on behalf of the principle, unless the delay in correcting the flaws puts the products' properties at risk.

2. Performance liabilities

The freight forwarder's obligation for the conduct of customs is the same as his liability for the works of any third party he employed in the transaction. More importantly, he treats customs as any other third party in the deal whose job it is to impose tariffs on the goods. As a result, the freight forwarder is not liable for the customs procedure's omissions and flaws, as well as for inaccurate tariff allocation of products, erroneously calculated customs value, and improperly identified items. However, because he is frequently a subject of customs procedures, he is required to register a complaint against customs determinations. A freight forwarder is required to keep his client informed about the status of the customs process. This is especially true when the items being shipped are subject to sanitary examination. The commodities are kept the longest at this step of the procedure.

3. Insurance liabilities

The freight forwarder's ability to carry out insurance activities is contingent on the existence of an insurance term in his principal's freight forwarding contract. Only when a freight forwarder deviates from the agreed-upon obligations is he held liable. Freight forwarders treat insurance firms the same way they treat all other subjects/third parties involved in the transaction. In terms of insurance, the freight forwarder is responsible if he has agreed to insure the items in subsequent shipments but fails to do so on some of them. Even if it isn't specifically stated, freight forwarders are obligated to insure their goods.

4. Release of cargo

Incorrect release of cargo could happen if the freight forwarder delivered the goods to the wrong party based on the type of commercial invoice issued. For instance, if the shipment was transferred to the consignee on a negotiable bill of lading without required endorsements. Similarly abandonment of cargo may occur if the consignee who was expected to receive the cargo abruptly gives up it due to a lack of finances, order cancellation, etc.

The insured must be held legally or contractually accountable, both for legal representation and for losses arising out of the Court's judgment of legal liability of the freight forwarding agent. Contractual liability does not mean non-compliance; instead, it does entail that the contract sets out the liability of the freight forwarder in event of a loss. These two issues are generally conflated, with the result that errors and emissions coverage has been included to fill the gap.

If the freight forwarder has not notification the Customer of the arrival of the cargo or has not done the clearance of the cargo on time, and the cargo has been detained and store, if the cost of cargo delivery is increased as a result of incompetence on the part of the freight forwarder, the Freight Forwarder would be responsible.

However, if, in view of the absence of the required documents on behalf of the consignor or shipper for the timely clearance of freight forwarders in Dubai, the delivery charges rose there should be no responsibility for the freight forwarder.