Transport Documents, Bills of Lading

The main transport documents are: the Railway Bill ¹ (for the transportation by the railroad), the Airfreight Bill ² (for air transportation), the Autoway Bill ³ (for auto transport) and the Bill of Lading ⁴ (B/L) (for sea transportation).

All these documents have much in common⁵ so there is no point⁶ in discussing all of them. It would be more useful to discuss in detail the main sea transportation document, i.e. the Bill of Lading, since the most voluminous⁷ international trade is still carried out by sea – be it in terms of the sheer bulk of the goods, or their cost⁸.

The transport of goods between two countries is organized by forwarding agents (shipping agents) ⁹ who send the goods to the place of destination either after warehousing¹⁰ or directly.

The forwarding agent undertakes the collection of smaller consignment collective consignment (consolidated cargo)¹¹, he sees to reforwarding or redirection of goods¹², their transhipment¹³, insurance and customs-clearance¹⁴. He gives request information as to the freight rates, port dues (dock dues), insurance rates¹⁵, etc.

For the announcement of goods to be shipped a shipping note ¹⁶ must be sent by the forwarder (on behalf of the shipper¹⁷) to a dock company¹⁸ or to the captain of the ship. The shipping note contains the request to transport the goods to a certain port of destination. Then, the goods are loaded on board the vessel¹⁹, after which the forwarder is given the mate’s receipt²⁰ certifying that the goods have been taken on board the ship. It may be a “clean receipt” ²¹ if the packing is in good order or a “foul receipt” ²² if the packing of the goods leaves anything to be desired.

Then the Bill of Lading is made out. It is the contract by which the shipowner agrees to convey the shipper’s cargo to the place of destination and to hand it over to the addressee²³ in the port of discharge.

The Bill of Lading is made out in several stamped originals²⁴ (usually three) and a number of unstamped copies (up to twenty five). In the port of destination only the holder of the Bill of Lading (which is sent either by air-mail or by ship’s mail) is entitled²⁵ to receive the goods.

In any Bill of Lading the following details should be stated: B/L Number, reference Number (Shippers’ Reference)²⁶, the names of the shipper and the consignee, the name, flag and shipowners of the vessel, the port of loading and discharge, the description of goods, the marks and numbers, the place and date of issue²⁷, freight particulars²⁸ and the terms of delivery²⁹.

The terms of delivery most commonly employed in international trade are the following:

C.I.F. (Cost, Insurance, Freight)³⁰. When this type of delivery is employed, the Buyer pays not only for the goods themselves, but for their transportation (freight), and also insures the goods. Freight is usually prepaid³¹.

C.&F., C.A.F. (Cost and freight)³². This is analogous to the previous, with the exception of insurance.

F.O.B. (Free on Board)³³. In many respects³⁴ this type of delivery is opposite to C.I.F. and C.A.F. In the case of a F.O.B. delivery the Shipper is usually responsible only for the delivery of the goods on board the vessel. When the goods are loaded, the Shipper’s responsibility is over. So, to look at it the Charter’s way, the loading for him is free³⁵. Under this type of delivery terms freight is usually not prepaid, but collect³⁶.

F.A.S. (Free alongside Ship)³⁷. This is much the same as the previous, only the Shipper does not even have to load the goods on board the vessel, he must only deliver the goods to the pier, leaving them alongside ship.

F.O. (Free out)³⁸. Everything until the ship is out of the port is the responsibility of one party (usually the Shipper), while afterwards it is the responsibility of another party (usually, the Charterer).

F.I.O.S. (Free in and out Stowed)³⁹. Stowing the vessel in the port of loading, and unstowing it in the port of discharge is not included in freight (is free).

Quite often Bills of Lading have a more detailed description of responsibilities concerning delivery, stowing, unstowing, etc. For instance, one may find in B/Ls such remarks as: “Discharging at the Port of Destination for the Buyers’ (Sellers’) Account”⁴⁰, “All Expenses connected with Stowing and Unstowing, Including Works in Holds are for the Consignee’s Account”⁴¹, “Shippers’ Load, Stowage, Count and Seal”⁴², “Cargo Shipped on Deck at Shippers’ Risk”⁴³, etc.

NOTES

Study the following English phrases used for successful negotiations on transportation issues. Try to translate them into Russian with the left column closed. Ask your partner to check you. Exchange the roles. Notice some new vocabulary and try to use it while composing your own dialogues based on the given phrases and words as props.

Beneath each sentence you will see four words or phrases, marked (A), (B), (C), and (D). Choose the one word or phrase that best completes the sentence.