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Bill of Lading (B:L) - What Is It? Its Different Types?
Bill of Lading (B:L) - What Is It? Its Different Types?
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A Bill of Lading is a receipt for goods either received (before shipment) or shipped on board.
1. Is a good evidence of the existence of a contract between the shipper and carrier. It is not Email *
a true contract since only one party signs it.
2. Is a document of title, signifying that the holder has the legal right to possession of the Subscribe
goods it describes. Right to possession is different from the right to ownership, which is
determined by the terms of the sale contract. Powered with ♥ by Cult of Sea
3. May, depending on how Bill of Lading is made out, be negotiable i.e. transferable to a
third party so as to affect the transfer of title to the goods it describes.
B/L states the quantity and apparent order and condition of the goods shipped and
normally declares “received in good order and condition unless otherwise stated” or
“shipped in good order and condition unless otherwise stated”. If there is a shortage or
damage to the cargo, appropriate remarks are made on the face of the B/L.
If there is no clause on the B/L showing a defective condition or quantity of the goods on
receipt by the carrier, the consignee may i. reasonably expect to receive the goods in
good order and condition. Any loss or damage to the goods will then be presumably due
to carrier’s negligence unless it can be proved due to acts of God, inherent vice of the
goods etc.
When a mate’s receipt is given the description on the B/L of the quantity/ condition of
the goods is copied from the mate’s receipt, it is important that the mate’s receipt states
the actual quantity and condition of the goods, where there are other remarks than “good
order and condition”.
Where there is no charter party e.g. where containerized cargo is loaded on a container vessel
in the shipowner’s own B/L, the shipowner is the legal carrier and issues its own B/L
containing the company’s terms and conditions of carriage. Some liner operators issue a
booking note signed by both the parties, which is a contract of carriage.
Where the charterer is also the shipper, the charterer is in effect issuing himself a B/L.
Where the charterer is not the shipper e.g. a carrier is time-chartering a vessel and operating
her in his own liner service, the contract of hire is contained in the time charter party. The
contract of hire between the carrier and the shipowner is contained in the time charter party. A
B/L issued to the shipper is evidence of the contract of carriage between the carrier and the
shipper. If the B/L contains no reference to the existence of a C/P, the shipper’s contract of
carriage will be with the shipowner. But if the B/L contains a reference to a C/P, the shipper’s
contract will be with the time charter.
1. Blank endorsement, whereby the shipper stamps the back of each original B/L with his
company’s stamp and signature without inserting any transferee’s name, before passing
the set of B/L to the transferee. A blank endorsed B/L is like a bearer cheque made out
to be encashed by anyone presenting the same. It is a dangerous document as anyone
presenting the original B/L can take delivery of the cargo. It is commonly used as
required by the bankers of the day.
2. Specific endorsement on the back of the B/L with the stamp and signature of the
shipper. The person to whom the title is transferred may be termed as the “endorsee”.
3. Attaching authorised delivery instructions on the shipper’s stationery e.g. a Delivery Order
from the shipper to the consignee. Once the B/L is negotiated the endorsee or
transferee become subject to the same liabilities and has the same rights against the
carrier as if the contract of carriage had originally been made with the endorsee. This
means if freight or demurrage is payable, the endorsee must pay before taking delivery.
The reason for having three original B/L is that in case the 1st original is lost or misplaced the
consignee can take delivery of the cargo with the 2nd or 3 original. Nowadays with electronic
B/L generation, the need of three original B/Ls is generally not required. Several “non-
negotiable” B/Ls are given to the shipper for various purposes including the one marked
“Captain’s Copy”.
1. “Long-form” B/L has spaces or boxes on its front for typed details and the numerous
printed conditions of carriage at the back. Most liner shipping companies have their own
long-term B/L.
2. “Short-form” B/L has only a few standard terms printed on it. It usually mentions that the
B/L issued is under terms and conditions of a relevant C/P.
3. “Direct” B/L is for carriage of goods from one place to another and does not anticipate
any transhipment. It has clauses on the reverse and is used for liner services.
4. “Combined transport” B/L covers carriage of goods from door-to-door by several
modes of transport. It is common in liner container trade.
5. “Through” B/L is issued when the carriage will involve both sea and other transport
modes, but different carriers will only be held responsible for that stage of transport only,
e.g. railway, sea or road.
6. “Received for shipment” B/L is issued when the cargo is received at the freight depot
after being cleared through customs and other authorities and ready for shipment on
board. When the goods are eventually shipped oh board, the above B/L is returned and
a fresh on board B/L is issued.
7. “Shipped” B/L is issued when the goods are loaded on the carrying ship.
8. “Straight” B/L is an American term for no-negotiable B/L.
Mate’s Receipt?
A Mate’s receipt (MR) is a receipt issued and signed by the chief mate of the ship for goods
received on board. MR is nowadays replaced by a modem document called the Standard
Shipping Note (SSN), but can still be seen in a conventional trade like general cargo, dry bulk
or tanker. The information in both the MR should be identical to that of the B/L.
The MR should be completed from the ship’s tally and show the actual quantity and condition
of the cargo as received. When the condition of cargo justifies it, the M/R should be remarked
as ‘torn bags’, ‘stained bales’ or ‘rust drums’ etc. Should there be a difference in the tally of the
ship and the shipper, MR should reflect the smaller of the two figures with the remark that “X
more bales in dispute, if onboard to be delivered”, X being the difference in the tally figures. MR
is normally in shipowner’s format and made in triplicate. The original is given to the shipper, the
2nd given to the agent and the 3rd left in the book of MR to be referred to at the time of
issuance of the B/L. M/R is not a document of title.
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BY CULT OF SEA
FILED UNDER: CARGO WORK
TAGGED WITH: BILL, BILL OF LADING, BILL OF LADING FORM, BILL OF LADING MEANING, BILLOFLADING, CARGO,
CONTRACT, LADING, MATE RECIEPT
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