Tricky Terms and Fine Print on the Bill of Lading
A Bill of Lading can be a complicated document, and, not surprisingly, many people don’t know what it is at all. This article is a brief overview of what a Bill of Lading is, and what some of the terms generally found on it actually mean
A Bill of Lading is basically a document issued by a carrier to a shipper acknowledging that non-specified items have been received as cargo to be shipped to a specific person called “the consignee”. Did any of that make sense? Why do people use these? Well, it identifies a person (the consignee) as having the right to possess whatever has been transported. If we’re talking about your household goods – that’s something you want to have!
If you’ve ever had a bag lost at the airport, you know the frustration that can arise when mistakes are made with personal items – a Bill of Lading is a document that is designed to prevent these issues by clearly outlining who is responsible for the cargo at all times.
Carrier: The person or organization who will be physically transporting the items (if you’re transporting goods from Halifax to Hamilton, your Hamilton movers will be the carrier).
Delivering Carrier: If you are doing a long distance move, you may have two different moving companies involved. For example, if you’re moving from Dawson City in the Yukon Territories to Mississauga, your carrier will be your Yukon moving company, and the delivering carrier will be some Mississauga movers who will take over the delivery.
Shipper or Consignor: The person or company who makes the order for the cargo to be shipped – often the consignee.
Consignee: Person or entity receiving the goods at their destination.
Clean: A Bill of Lading is described as clean when it has reached its destination intact and undamaged.
Shipment Declared Value: This is the financial value of your shipment. It’s generally calculated by weight.
Freight: This is the method of transportation, truck, train, plane or boat.
Class or Rate: These are terms that will refer to the specific items you will ship, as determined by their value. More valuable items have a higher class or rate than lower value items.
Tariff: this will be a table or chart outlining all of the different fees you’ll be paying, the rules specific to your moving company, and they way they classify different items.
Waybill: A receipt issued by the carrier when cargo is transported by air or sea and the cargo is likely to arrive before other pieces of documentation. You’ll only run into this term if you’re shipping items from overseas.
Got all that? Good! The truth is, you won’t really have to worry about any of this; nine times out of ten your moving company will handle it for you as part of their service. It never hurts to read the fine print, however, and if you’re going to do that, you should know what it means.
Good luck with your move!
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