bill of lading

The bill of lading is a shipping document that the carrier issues to the exporter directly or to the shipper commissioned by the exporter on the basis of a sea freight contract. It documents the receipt of the goods and the obligation to transport and hand over the goods to the authorized recipient.

Types of bill of lading

• The on-board bill of lading, which certifies to the sender that the goods are on board the named ship in accordance with the freight contract for shipping (§ 642 HGB).
• The mate's receipt as a helmsman's receipt, which often precedes the on-board bill of lading as a provisional certificate of receipt of the goods on board the ship.
• The takeover bill of lading that certifies that the shipper has received the goods from the shipowner for shipment (Section 642 of the German Commercial Code).
• The through bill of lading, which z. B. is used in container traffic if there is no continuous liner service from the port of shipment to the port of destination and other ships are involved for sections of the route.
• The warehouse bill of lading that certifies receipt of the goods for shipment and temporary storage.
• The port bill of lading, which proves that the goods have been received for shipment and that the ship is already at anchor.
• These bills of lading determine the legal status of the recipient of the goods. In contrast to the waybill they are not documents accompanying the goods but receipt documents.