Tonnes of trouble

A European liner agent took a booking for a consignment of engineering equipment to be transported by short sea to the Netherlands. The agent issued a bill of lading in accordance with the shipping instructions but included the weight in the cargo description as kilogrammes rather than tonnes.

On arrival at the discharge port, Dutch customs levied a fine on the carrier of USD  10,500. With a clear audit trail of where the documentary error took place, not surprisingly, the shipping line settled this amount and passed on a prompt claim for reimbursement from their load port agent.