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Port and Agency Services

areless errors by ship agents Another case referred to by ITIC
are resulting in costly claims, involved the submission by a port

according to ITIC, the agent of all relevant cargo
professional indemnity insurer of declarations in respect of a ship which

service providers in the transport and had tendered notice of readiness in a

offshore industries.Middle East port. These declarations
In a recent issue of its Claims included a document which the agent

Review, it cited the case of a ship had translated into Arabic and English,
agent which had incorrectly and which described the cargo and

calculated two pro-forma invoices in the names of the consignees.
respect of port dues, using the When the ship arrived, the only

cheaper rate for a cargo of malt, berth at which it could discharge was
rather than the rate for the cargo of not available for a further 10 days and

wheat booked for discharge from mistakes in the translation of the
two ships.cargo declarations were subsequently

The wheat cargoes had been noticed, resulting in a three-day delay

discharged and the final invoices for in clearing the ship for berthing which
port dues sent out before the error coincided with the last three days of

was discovered. However, the the overall 10-day delay.
difference between the invoiced port The owner claimed against the

dues and the correct port dues port agent for the full 10-day period
totalled €14,000 but the owner of delay, arguing that the ship had not

refused to make up the shortfall legally been able to berth due to the
because, relying on what it had been documentary error. ITIC helped the

told, it had in turn charged the lower agent negotiate a settlement based on
amount to the charterer. The claim 50% of the overall delay of $110,000,

was settled by ITIC.which ITIC paid. u

2014 Issue 63
The SHIP Supplier 37