Specialist attorney focuses on contractual agreements in the freight industry

'A well-drafted agreement avoids unnecessary disputes' CARGO HANDLERS who rely exclusively on the IATA terms and conditions for their protection in the case of contractual disagreements or claims can come horribly short. That's the advice from specialist attorney Gary Lance Rachbuch whose fascination with the transport industry has steered his legal mind into the field of contractual agreements relevant to the courier and freight forwarding industries. These include agreements relating to cargo carriage, cargo handling, sales agency, agency and sub-agency and warehousing and distribution. Certainty "An agreement allows for certainty," says Rachbuch. "One large claim can put a small company into liquidation, which illustrates how critical it is to have the right measures in place." It's a field which became particularly relevant ten years ago when a novel insurance concept was introduced to the courier industry. Whereas in the past companies undertaking the carriage of goods were required to place insurance with an external insurer, a new method of insurance risk management enabled the company to self-insure. As long as it had measures in place to reduce that risk, it could reduce the number of claims and use the premiums received as a second source of income. "For that to work a lot of carriage companies needed to radically rewrite their terms and conditions because the risk was in-house, and that's where I came into the picture," says Rachbuch. "But even where companies did not embark on that route, it was still important for them to ensure that their standard terms and conditions of carriage provided sufficient protection against claims by customers when things went wrong." The list of clients whose terms and conditions he has rewritten reads like an industry Who's Who, including the likes of XPS, IBM, FedEx and Safcon to mention a few. Rachbuch however points out that for cargo handling companies who are involved both in the cargo handling and GSA aspects of the freight industry, agreements are equally essential to properly define the roles of the various stakeholders and what the client can expect from the cargo handler. "Where roles and obligations are clearly defined, this serves to avoid unnecessary disputes and the possibility of a breakdown in the relationship between the parties. Only well-drafted agreements can avoid this situation." Through his extensive involvement in the airfreight handling sector, Rachbuch has become patently aware of that industry's misguided notion that the IATA standard terms and conditions provide sufficient cover. "They provide the barest essentials and it's vital that companies flesh them out to provide sufficient protection for their own needs." It's a simple step to take, but in the long run it could mean the difference between a company's survival or failure.