‘Principal co-loader must be named’

A LACK of adequate documentation makes it very difficult to track-and-trace the movement of co-loaded cargo, according to consultant Graham Pile. “So it’s very difficult to sort out claims,” he said.
If parties are moving high-value cargoes, it’s at risk in a co-load situation - and very difficult for insurers to work out where responsibility lies in the result of a claim.
The main problem where two or more forwarders share a box, is that there normally isn’t a principal co-loader named. “And there should be,” said Pile, “otherwise there’s no check on the completed container load, and no liable party.
“They need to work out a contract of carriage. An agreement in terms of which there’s a principal co-loader, who will carry the can if anything goes wrong.”
There’s no easy answer, but all parties agree that the problem needs to be recognised by the forwarding community - and some sort of agreement reached to lessen the problem of attributing liability in terms of a claim.