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BILL OF LADING
Types of Bill of Lading
Long Form Bill of Lading
The term long form bill of lading is a
reference to an ordinary, usually negotiable bill of lading. As
mentioned before, the face of the bill of lading (page 1) has boxes or spaces
for the necessary details referring to the shipper, vessel, port of loading,
freight details and charges, etc. which have to be properly typed; the back
of the bill of lading (page 2) has numerous printed clauses giving the conditions
of carriage (The Conlinebill is a typical long form bill of lading).
See also the Combined
Transport Bill of Lading, long form terms and conditions.
Short Form Bill of Lading
The short form bill of lading is a bill of lading which does not have the full terms and conditions of the contract of carriage printed on its back. Instead, it contains on the front of the document a clause, called the "Incorporation Clause" with a reference to the Carrier's Standard Conditions, normally stating that a copy of his conditions are available on request, either in his office or via e-mail or internet.
A classic provision appearing on a Short Form Bill of Lading reads as follows:
"The contract evidenced by this Short Form Bill of Lading is subject to the exceptions, limitations, conditions and liberties (including those relating to pre-carriage and on-carriage) set out in the Carrier's Standard Conditions applicable to the voyage covered by this Short Form Bill of Lading and operative on its date of issue".
It may also state that the Hague Rules or the Hague-Visby Rules are applicable.
The "Short Form Bill of Lading" is not widely used outside the US because there is always the risk that the holder of such a bill of lading may claim that he was unable to ascertain himself of the terms and conditions of the document and that he consequently cannot be bound by them. Although, thanks to the modern means of communication, this risk decreases considerably, the popularity of the "Short Form Bill of Lading" does not grow appreciably.
In the US, the terms and conditions of the bill of lading have to be deposited by the "USA Federal Maritime Commission". Because the merchant can always obtain these details, the Short Form Bill of Lading is more broadly used in the US. The merchant can not invoke that the terms and conditions of the bill of lading were not applicable under the pretext that they were not available.
The Short Form Bill of Lading was brought into being to simplify the emission of the bill of lading by putting a "Standard" bill of lading at the disposal of the carrier who could use it for all sorts of traffics and simply refer to his standard terms and condition with one standard clause, the so called "Incorporation Clause". To have to keep a large stock of different kinds of bills of lading would than be superfluous.
The blank back bill of lading is almost identical to the Short Form Bill of Lading on the understanding that the back of the document bears no clauses at all and is consequently intentionally left blank.
Like the Short Form Bill of Lading, the Blank Back Bill of Lading is hardly used outside the US.
Some years ago it was designed by BIMCO to be used in the liner traffic as a replacement for the Conlinebill.
The general terms and conditions of the carrier were these from the "Carrier's Standard Conditions of Carriage" or by want of such conditions, those from the Conlinebill.
The Blank Back Bill of Lading can also be used as a Through Bill of Lading.
The Short Form Bill of Lading and the Blank Back Bill of Lading are negotiable and accepted by the banks when an application is made for a documentary credit.
