UK forwarders rethink operating procedures after Uniserve case

Forwarders in the UK have begun to adjust working practices in response to the liability loophole exposed in last week’s IFW.

Freight service providers operating under limited liability terms and conditions (T&Cs) may find themselves uninsured with unlimited liability in the event of a supply chain error - even if the error is caused by a third party - following a May judgement against Uniserve over the theft of pallet from its Manchester warehouse.

Susan Maloney, director of resources at UK forwarder SBS Worldwide, told IFW that the case had raised awareness at the company. "You can see how easily something like this could happen in a busy warehouse, where things can turn up without much documentation.

"I have explained to some of our GMs that we have to be very careful if anything unexpected turns up and to ensure our warehouse staff know to alert their line manager.

"If people don’t know what to do with a consignment, then it’s important to keep the goods as safe as possible while we find out where they came from."

Additionally, the Irish International Freight Association told IFW that its supervisory council had arranged a special meeting on 7 July to discuss the case.

Alan Braithwaite, chairman of LCP Consulting and visiting professor at Cranfield University, said: "This has raised the fundamental problem that the normal terms and conditions of carriage and storage were just not written for the eventuality that pallets can be worth up to £1m.

"What this could mean is that everybody will have to write their own terms and conditions and the costs of doing business will go through the roof."