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Sea waybills and related procedure for cargo ships agreement
What is a sea waybill ?
A sea waybill is a receipt for goods shipped on board.
It bears good evidence of the existence and terms of a contract between the shipper and carrier, but is not a contract
itself.
It identifies the person to whom delivery of the goods is to be made by the carrier in accordance with the
contract of carriage.
In contrast with a bill of lading, a sea waybill always bears the consignee’s name (and
usually also his address) in the appropriate box on its face.
Sea waybills usually (but do not always) bear the words “NON-NEGOTIABLE” on their
face. The conditions of carriage may also bear a statement such as: “This Waybill is not a bill of lading and no
bill of lading will be issued”, or “This Waybill, which is not a document of title to the cargo....”.
It is not a document of title. Rightful possession of a sea
waybill does not give the right to possession of the goods described in it.
It may be a receipt for freight, if endorsed to indicate that freight has been paid.
It may contain the full conditions of carriage, which will usually be similar to the carrier’s bill of lading
conditions. (Liner waybills tend to have the full terms on their reverse, whereas other waybills, such as gas tank
waybills, do not.)
It may be subject to the Hague Rules or Hague-Visby Rules, and if so may contain a Clause Paramount.
The Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 (COGSA 92)
contains a definition of a sea waybill in section 1(3) which provides that:
(a) “References in this Act to a sea waybill are references to any document which is not a bill of lading but -
is such a receipt for goods as contains or evidences a contract for the carriage of goods by sea; and
(b) identifies the person to whom delivery of the goods is to be made by the carrier in accordance with that
contract”.
A sea waybill can (and should) be used when it is clear that a negotiable document of title will not be required,
i.e. when -
• the goods will not sold to a third party (i.e. a new consignee) while in transit; or
• credit will not be raised on the security of the goods, e.g. on a bank’s documentary credit terms.
If these are not possibilities, and the shipper and buyer are well-established trading partners, the use of a sea waybill
is appropriate and is encouraged by BIMCO.
The benefits of using sea waybills instead of bills of lading
Sea waybills can be carried on board the carrying vessel, since they do not need to be produced by the receiving party
in order to claim delivery of the goods. This means that the documents will arrive at the discharge port with the
goods, overcoming the problems of postal delay, theft in transit, etc., and the non-availability of bills of lading
on arrival of the ship. (Postal and administrative delays are especially troublesome in the short-sea trades where
voyages are short and turn-round times fast.)
A “ship’s bag” containing the sea waybills, manifest, dangerous
goods documentation, etc. will usually be brought on board by the loading port agent for handing by the master
to the discharge port agent.
Sea waybills are not subject to any documentary formalities other than a reasonable check by the carrier or his agent
of the identity of the person claiming delivery of the goods.
Because they are not documents of title, they are less likely to be used fraudulently. Money cannot be raised
against a sea waybill as it can against negotiable original bill of lading.
Sea waybills are issued by the carrier using a similar procedure as for issuing bills of lading.
If the sea waybill is not carried on the ship it must be sent by the shipper (by mail, courier, etc.) to the consignee
and produced by him or his agent (e.g. his receiver) to the carrier or his agent at the discharge port, in order to claim
delivery of the goods.
The carrier or his agent must still exercise due care in ensuring that delivery is made to the proper party, by
making a reasonable check of his identity. In event of misdelivery, no responsibility is normally accepted unless
due to fault or neglect on the part of the carrier.
A substantial proportion of international liner trade consignments is now shipped under sea waybills, normally in
circumstances where the goods are not the subject of a sale contract and where the shipper retains the right to
nominate the identity of the receiver.
Related other info pages
- What is a bill of lading ?
A bill of lading is a receipt for goods either received (before shipment) or shipped on board.
It provides good evidence of the existence and terms of a contract between the shipper and carrier ...
More .....
- Function of a bill of lading in cargo ships agreement
a bill of lading is only prima facie evidence as to the quantity, weight and condition of goods
shipped, i.e. if a bill is signed for a greater quantity of cargo than is actually shipped, it may be possible, provided
the bill is not endorsed to a third party,...
More .....
- Bill of lading related problems
Problems may arise handling a bill of lading....
More .....
- How the bolero system works ?
Bolero is designed for all parties in the trade process:
importers, exporters, freight forwarders, port authorities, inspection agencies, carriers, ship’s agents, customs
agencies and financial institutions....
More .....
- Delivery conditions in a time charter agreement
Unless the contract contained in the bill of lading, charter party or sea waybill expressly provides otherwise, goods
stated in the contract of carriage as being carried on deck and which are, in fact, stowed on deck will not be
protected by the Hague-Visby Rules. ...
More .....
- Hague-Visby Rules defining cargo ships obligations and liability
Hague-Visby Rules (HVRs) are properly called the Hague Rules as Amended by the Brussels Protocol 1968 and apply to every bill of lading or any similar document of title relating to the carriage of goods between ports...
More .....
- Hamburg Rules
Hamburg Rules are properly called the United Nations Convention on the Carriage of Goods by Sea 1978, were drafted under the auspices of the UN agency UNCITRAL and introduced in 1992 in response to shippers’ complaints that the Hague and Hague-Visby Rules were unfavourably weighted in favour of the carrier....
More .....
- Outline of a mate's receipt
A mate’s receipt is a receipt, issued and signed by the carrying ship’s chief mate (or the ship’s agent on his behalf), for goods
received on board....
More .....
- Sea waybills and related procedure
A sea waybill is a receipt for goods shipped on board.
It bears good evidence of the existence and terms of a contract between the shipper and carrier, but is not a contract
itself....
More .....
- What is standard shipping note
Standard Shipping Note (SSN) is a shipping document widely used in the UK liner trades to accompany a consignment of goods from their place of origin (e.g. a factory) to the place of loading (e.g. an inland container depot) or the port of shipment....
More .....
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