DO CLEARING and forwarding agents and their clients know what horse-trading goes on to move a container by road with a broker? Do they know the risk of using such a service? This was the hot topic which Clifford Blackburn of International Delivery Company put to Cargo Info Africa, FTW's Internet publication. FTW's Durban correspondent Terry Hutson investigates...
In the past few weeks FTW has documented at least ten containers that disappeared from Durban's container terminal. In that time an unknown quantity is known to have been stolen from private depots and terminals, and yet another unknown figure from containers in transit by road.
Fingers are pointed and much has been said as terminal operators attempt to come to grips with a seemingly increasing rate of fraud and theft. So it seems all the more surprising to discover just how flexible importers and exporters can be when dealing with transport matters for their valuable cargo. They often entrust hundreds of thousands and occasionally millions of rands of freight to unknown transport carriers, simply for the sake of saving a few hundred rands in fees negotiated at the end of a telephone line.
We spoke to several C&F agents, to brokers and to Portnet. Portnet's views on this subject are well known. They point out that it is very difficult to specify who is handling each container. What this means is that they cannot interfere with who is appointed as a transporter, although they complain they will usually be blamed when things go wrong.
Portnet has tried to tighten up on identity documents, but this is proving to be an almost impossible task.
According to Jim Binnie, Portnet's quality assurance and systems manager, some brokers are now arranging for one-man truckers to sign-write the broker's name on their vehicles, thereby creating an impression of respectability for themselves despite having little or no control over the individual truckers.
It turned out that no less than three different truckers had been appointed to move the box over various sections of its intended journey In another instance we learned the curious story of an exporter who telephonically entrusted a container of manufactured goods to a broker for delivery across the border. It was only after the box had disappeared in transit that he began investigating the broker employed, and it turned out that no less than three different truckers had been appointed to move the box over various sections of its intended journey. In each instance a telephone contract was employed. Somewhere on its journey the box disappeared.
Ask around before you enter into any contract We were told of cases where transporters take on work but then can't cope and broker out some of their contracts. Unknown people are now dealing with someone else's property worth hundreds of thousands of rands. This procedure can be repeated several times with other brokerage taking place, and sometimes the actual delivery goes haywire. Meanwhile the owner of the cargo remains blissfully unaware.
Another perception is that when some brokers are employed they shop around among the truckers looking for the best price - Ôbest' meaning cheapest. We were told of cases where CTOs (container terminal orders) were made out in one name, changed to another, and then later to a third person, all because cheaper offers had been made to transport the goods.
Alwyn Nel of Kingfisher Freight Services agreed this was a problem with some brokers, but he emphasised the importance of clients and their agents checking out the credentials of all brokers and transport companies employed.
In every line of business people shop around for cheaper prices without regard for quality of service, he told FTW. It's not a unique transport problem. Kingfisher doesn't give work to just any transporter. We know all the truckers we use and we offer a guaranteed service where everyone, including me as the broker, is held accountable to our principal.
Ask around before you enter into any contract, he advised. We welcome enquiries and word of mouth is our best source of business. You don't get repeat business if your bona fides are not in order. This underlines the necessity for importers and exporters to become involved in their C&F agents' activities, especially on the transport leg of their transactions. Any simple common-sense risk management procedure would deem it natural, although many transactions appear to be taken blindly, purely on trust and a promise made over the telephone.
What's your view? Join our Hot Topics discussion group on Cargo Info Africa and tell us about your experiences - good and bad. If you're a broker, let us know your views.
Either e-mail Cargo Info Africa's editor, Gaile Thompson, on gaile@rapidttp.com or fax FTW on (011)726-3994.
