Insurance

UNIQUE Has You Covered

Did you know that air carriers and ocean carriers typically only provide limited cargo insurance coverage? With growing uncertainty in the market, why take chances with while moving goods within your supply chain. UNIQUE works with several underwriters to offer “all-risk” coverage at competitive rates, unlocked through our bulk buying power, to protect your inventory from door to door.

Don’t Leave Your Inventory Unprotected

Two important things to know when considering the limited general liability and coverage provided by the air and ocean freight carriers:

  • The general provision under any air, ocean, warehouse, or trucking bill of lading is only limited liability. The maximum exposure for carriers on claims involving shortages and damages is limited to $500 per shipping container. That means if the value of your cargo is $50,000, the most you would potentially receive in a total loss is $500 or 1 percent.
  • Due to the complexities of international transportation and the multiple parties involved, there are often multiple claims filed to the perceived responsible parties involved in a claim. The average time for processing and concluding a claim is 10-12 months.

If your company does not have cargo insurance, we would strongly recommend that you obtain it either through UNIQUE or under your own policy. Having cargo insurance will limit your company’s financial exposure.

Here are some of the benefits of carrying cargo insurance:

  1. Claims are processed within a shorter time frame.
  2. Coverage includes the freight, commercial invoice value (the purchase cost from vendor/export value declared at origin), customs duty, and a 10 percent residual value.
  3. Cost is less than 0.5 percent (half percent) of the cost of any imported commodity.