SPLIT BOXES coming up from Durban are creating insurance headaches, according to Amusa chairman Dave Keeling. “There is generally little or no documentation trail and everyone seems to abrogate responsibility. “Scant attention is paid to the safety of the cargo and no check is kept on what has been taken out of the box.” The result is a growing pile of small claims. It’s been a problem for the last two years and it’s getting worse, says Keeling. There is generally no paper trail and the commodities are packed for containerised rather than breakbulk movement. “When they’re removed from the container the packaging is insufficient to protect the goods from natural hazards of the weather or the additional handling necessary to complete delivery to final destination, and damage results. “There’s a general disregard for the integrity of the cargo, and for a small commercial concern, the insurance payout is little compensation for the resulting loss of business.” According to Keeling, one case involved a Chinese shipment vanned and devanned two or three times. “By the time it arrived here it had been handled more often than breakbulk.”
