Conditions of Contract

YOUR OBLIGATION:

You warrant that each article in the shipment is properly described on either our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation and is acceptable for transport by us and that the shipment is properly marked and addressed and packed to ensure safe transportation in handling. We may assist but will not ultimately be responsible for any shipment that is not properly marked and addressed and packed to ensure safe transportation in handling. Whether it is at your request or at our discretion you will be responsible for any charges incurred as a result of any shipment being repacked for either legal / statutory reasons or for reasons of safety and security or to ensure safe transportation in handling. You warrant that you will also conform to the terms of this contract.

QUALIFIED ACCEPTANCE:

We reserve the right to reject your shipment – after acceptance and prior to the performance of any part of the transportation service – for whatever reason we deem fit including but not limited to disagreements on processes or pricing; when shipments might cause damage or delays to other shipments; when shipments might cause damage or delays to equipment or personnel. This will also apply if the transportation of your shipment is prohibited by any local or national or international law or is in violation of any rules contained within our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation or our tariffs. You will be responsible for the cost of returning any such shipment from our premises to the point of origin.

ITEMS NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR TRANSPORTATION:

We reserve the right not to accept certain items for carriage and other items may be accepted for carriage only to limited destinations or under restricted conditions. We reserve the right to reject packages based upon these limitations for either legal / statutory reasons or for reasons of safety and security.

RIGHT TO INSPECT:

We may at our discretion open and inspect and/or repack any shipment for any reason including but not limited to: verification of contents, for reasons of health and safety and for security reasons prior to or after acceptance of the shipment for transportation. Your shipment may also be subject to inspection by statutory bodies / authorities either at the airport or port of origin and / or at the airport or port of destination. We will not be responsible for the actions of any such bodies / authorities and you will be required to address any concerns raised.

HEALTH AND SAFETY:

Just as we reserve the right to reject packages based upon certain limitations for either legal / statutory reasons or for reasons of safety and security so also do we reserve the right to refuse customers entry into designated areas of any of our premises for either legal / statutory reasons or for reasons of health and safety. We also will not accept any physical, verbal or psychological abuse of our staff or representatives and reserve the right to seek legal redress and or civil compensation.

PACKAGING AND LABELLING:

The Client shall be responsible for appropriately packaging the goods to prevent damage during transit. Additionally, the Client shall ensure that all goods are labelled accurately and conspicuously with all necessary information, including but not limited to, shipping addresses, handling instructions, and any required hazardous materials declarations.

DOCUMENTS AND PERMITS:

The Client shall provide all necessary documentation and permits required for the lawful transportation of the goods, including but not limited to, commercial invoices, bills of lading, export licenses, and certificates of origin.

NOTICE OF LIMITATION OF LIABILITY – AIR AND SEA CARRIAGE NOTICE:

If the carriage of your shipment by air involves an ultimate destination or stop in a country other than the country of departure the Warsaw / Montreal Convention, an international treaty relating to international carriage by air, may be applicable. This treaty would then govern and limit our liability to US$25.00  per package unless you declare a higher value for the carriage as described below. Likewise if the carriage of your shipment by sea involves an ultimate destination or stop in a country other than the country of departure the Hamburg Convention, an international treaty relating to international carriage by sea, may be applicable. This treaty would then govern and limit our liability to US$20.00 per package unless you declare a higher value for the carriage as described below.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY:

Unless you declare a higher shipment valuation and pay the fee our limit of liability is the lower of the following: (a) Actual value of the package when lost or damaged or (b) For shipments sent by air: US$25.00 per package when lost or damaged or (c) For shipments sent by sea: US$20.00 per package when lost or damaged. We deem a package to be each piece as marked as the total number of pieces within a shipment as stated on our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation and does not include the number of pieces within the package i.e. does not include supplementary units unless the loss or damage to supplementary units are across more than one package in which case they will be calculated on a pro rata basis to determine the number of lost or damaged packages. In any event we will not be liable for acts of omission including but not limited to inadequate packing, marking, or addressing, or for acts of omission of the receiver or any party having interest in the shipment. We are also not liable for theft, loss, damage or delay caused by circumstances outside of our control, including but not limited to Acts of God; perils of the air or sea; airline or ocean liner inadequacies; adverse weather conditions; natural disasters; acts of public enemies; strikes; civil commotion; civil unrest or acts of omission by statutory bodies / authorities such as customs, police, immigration and quarantine officials who have actual or apparent authority. We also are not liable if you or the receiver violate any terms of this contract.

INSURANCE:

To extend your protection beyond our limit of liability you may elect to purchase insurance by designation on our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation and pay the premium. Such insurance coverage is governed by the policy in force. You may alternatively elect to purchase insurance of your own accord and be subject to the governance of such a policy. We are under no obligation to advise you to insure your goods and are under no obligation to reimburse you for any lost or damaged goods if you failed to extend your protection beyond our limit of liability. We will take it as read that if no mention of insurance is made during any transaction that you have either decided not to insure your goods or have made your own arrangements. Please note that the value declared to us at the onset of any transaction will remain the value at which the your shipments will be treated up until the very end of the transaction. Retrospective valuations are unacceptable which implies that any recompense due for insured goods will be based on the declared value of the goods at the time the premium was paid. Furthermore if you decide to insure your goods but to fail to provide proper documentation to substantiate/validate the value of your goods whilst they are in our possession we will deem the value to be less than or equal to but no more than $500.00

DELAYED SHIPMENTS:

We shall make every reasonable effort to deliver your shipment according to our normal delivery schedules but this is not guaranteed and does not form part of this contract. We will not be liable for any delay that we deem to have been beyond our control. Furthermore we make no guarantees of any financial settlement or refund for any delayed shipment.

DELIVERY OF SHIPMENTS:

We reserve the right to refuse to deliver your shipment – after acceptance and after the performance of any part of the transportation service – to a particular destination or location within a destination. However once your shipment has been accepted we shall make every reasonable effort to deliver the shipment according to our normal delivery schedules to the address provided at the beginning of the transaction but this is not guaranteed and does not form part of this contract. Where we find it impossible / impractical /not feasible to deliver to an address or to parts/areas of an address provided at the beginning of the transaction you will be required to provide us with an alternative address that is not impossible or is not impractical or is feasible to deliver the shipment to. Alternatively you can provide us with an alternative part or area of the address at which the delivery can be made. If you are unable to provide us with an alternative part / area of the current address or an alternative address altogether then the shipment will be taken back to our designated warehouse upon which a further delivery will be attempted if we receive an alternative address or you may wish to make your own arrangements to collect the shipment from the designated warehouse. You may be charged for any further deliveries of the same shipment if you do not wish to make your own arrangements to collect the shipment from the designated warehouse. Furthermore you may be required to pay for storage whilst we await an alternative address or whilst we wait for you to make your own arrangements to collect the shipment from the designated warehouse. We make no guarantees of any financial settlement or refund for any shipment lost or damaged if stored beyond our minimum term of retention.

STORAGE / DEMURRAGE:

There will be a minimum term of retention at each of our designated warehouses and or within our premises (which may not be within an actual warehouse) and charges will apply if this term is exceeded.  You are advised to enquire at the onset of each transaction what the term of retention is and what charges will apply. We reserve the right to dispose of goods left in any of our designated warehouses or within our premises (which may not be within an actual warehouse) after the minimum term of retention which we deem to be abandoned even if any storage or demurrage charges have been paid. We are not a bona fide storage company therefore have neither the facilities nor the wherewithal to preserve your goods. To this end any goods stored in our designated warehouses and or premises (which may not be within an actual warehouse) are done so at the owner’s risk and we will not be liable for any loses of or damages to such goods even if any storage or demurrage charges have been paid. Without prejudice, regardless of our prevailing term of retention, any goods stored in our designated warehouses and or premises (which may not be within an actual warehouse) for eight weeks or more will be disposed of without alluding to the customer.

CHARGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES FOR PAYMENT:

Even when different payments instructions have been given and even if it is after the performance of any part of the transaction/shipment you will always be responsible for all charges including but not limited to transportation charges; all auxiliary charges;  all duties and other Customs assessed fees; governmental or statutory body / authority penalties or fines; taxes and our attorneys’ fees and legal costs relating to any shipment belonging to you (or your representative) and the warehousing of any such shipment even if pending disposition. You will be responsible for any additional and/or forgotten charges incurred as a result of your transaction/shipment regardless of any previous quotes or payments made in relation to that particular transaction/shipment. Payments for transactions/shipments will be based on the higher of either the dead weight of the goods or the volume weight of the goods. We reserve the right to change our charges without notification if we deem it to be necessary to do so.

VAT – UK SHIPMENTS (EQUIVALENT TAX – ALL OTHER COUNTRIES):

We are not responsible for the processing or the refund of VAT in the UK (or the equivalent tax in all other countries) for shipments that have been exported using our services. You are advised to discuss these tax issues with your supplier before the purchase of your goods. We will endeavor to provide your supplier in the UK with proof of export within four weeks of your goods leaving the UK (other conditions apply in all other countries) but do not take responsibility if for whatever reason your supplier refuses to process or refund your VAT in the UK (or the equivalent tax in all other countries).

CUSTOM CLEARANCE:

By giving your shipment to us you hereby appoint us as your agents solely for the performance of custom clearance and certify us as the consignees for the purpose of designating a customs broker to perform customs clearance (unless you specify a customs broker on our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation). In some circumstances statutory authorities may require additional documentation confirming our appointment. It is your responsibility to provide proper documentation and confirmation where required. You are responsible for and warrant your compliance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations including but not limited to customs laws, import and export laws and government regulations of any country to or from or through or over which your shipment may be carried. We will not be liable for any goods taken in part or in full by any statutory official(s) who has (have) actual or apparent authority. You will also be responsible for all charges pre notified or not relating to the clearance of your goods which include any additional charges as requested by any authorised government authority.

CLAIMS FOR LOSS, DAMAGE OVERCHARGING OR DELAYS:

All claims for reimbursement must be made in writing to us within specific time periods after the date on which we deliver your shipment as follows: (a) Within 24 hours after the delivery if the shipment is perishable and if the receiver has signed a delivery receipt with or without notation of damage or loss. We must be notified in writing of the loss or damage. (b) Within 48 hours after the delivery if the shipment is non perishable and if the receiver has signed a delivery receipt without notation of damage or loss. We must be notified in writing of the loss or damage. (c) Within 7 days after the delivery if the shipment is non perishable and if the receiver has signed a delivery receipt with notation of damage or loss. We must be notified in writing of the loss or damage.  (d) Within 14 days if it is an overcharge claim. We must be notified in writing. (e) Within 14 days if it is a claim for delay. We must be notified in writing but please note that we will not be liable for any delay that we deem to have been beyond our control regardless of the circumstances. Furthermore we make no guarantees of any financial settlement or refund for any claim.

WARRANTIES:

We will deem these Terms and Conditions (Contract) to be binding for as long as you or your representative have received our airway bill / warehouse receipt / shippers declaration or any other suitable form of documentation OR have been in receipt of electronic correspondence from ourselves such as an e-mail / social media message OR have used our services at least once in the past. We make no warranties expressed or implied and we reserve the right to change or amend any of our policies or charges without recourse to consultation or without notice.