|
|
Freight from the USA
|
|
|
|||
|
U.S. Sea freight Price Calculator
Shipping Boxes, Crates and Pallets (LCL)
|
|
Amid Logistics, LLC
General Terms and Conditions of the Service
USING OUR SERVICE
Please note that we reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason.
To use international cargo transportation services provided by Amid Logistics, LLC (after that, we, us, our, etc.), all users of these services (after that shipper, you, client, customer, he, she, etc.) MUST agree to the General Terms and Conditions. You may NOT use these services unless you accept these Terms and Conditions.
You accept these Terms and Conditions by:
BUSINESS AND LICENSING
Amid Logistics, LLC is a licensed and bonded U.S. OTI – Ocean Transportation Intermediary - U.S. Freight Forwarder. Upon request, a copy of our OTI license with proof of financial responsibilities (the surety bond) may be furnished to authorized parties.
According to the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations: "...An Ocean freight forwarder is an individual or company that dispatches shipments from the United States via common carriers and books or otherwise arranges space for those shipments on behalf of shippers. Ocean freight forwarders also prepare and process the documentation and perform related activities pertaining to those shipments..."
ATTENTION ROGUE MOVERS (OR UNLICENSED OCEAN TRANSPORTATION INTERMEDIARY)!
The U.S. Federal Law (the Shipping Act of 1984) requires Ocean Transportation Intermediaries to be licensed and bonded. Accepting cargo from unlicensed OTI constitutes a violation of the Shipping Act. Knowing and willful violations of the Shipping Act carry a possible civil penalty of up to $30,000 per occurrence.
Amid Logistics, LLC is held responsible for not providing service to unlicensed OTIs (rogue movers) as a licensed and bonded U.S. OTI. To do so, when booking a shipment with us, the party that books the shipment must confirm that they are NOT an unlicensed OTI and do NOT arrange the international shipping for a shipper unless operating under an OTI license.
Falsification of this statement is considered an attempt to violate the Shipping Act. Information about the attempt and obtained information about the unlicensed OTI will be forwarded to the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission to penalize the unlicensed OTI for illegal activity.
GENERAL
All information published on our website, including shipping costs obtained in quotes, is subject to changes without notice. All texts, references, and links should be considered only as suggestions based on our working experience in the ocean freight shipping industry. We DO NOT guarantee its accuracy in all circumstances. It CAN NOT be considered an official shipping procedures in all situations. We CAN NOT ensure that our website is free from typos in the content or numbers in shipping rates, charges, etc. If a consumer faces a misunderstanding or error, then upon a note, we will do our best to resolve the issue with less harm for both of us ASAP.
To eliminate confusion, customers must NOT accept any verbal shipping agreements. We CAN NOT honor verbal shipping price quotes or any perceived promises. All pricing, commitments, and contracts have to be in writing.
Detailed service conditions from an ocean freight carrier used on a shipment can be found on the backside of the ocean freight bill of lading of the carrier used on the particular load. Consider an ocean freight bill of lading as evidence of a carriage/shipping contract between an ocean freight carrier and the shipper.
COMMUNICATION
In our practice, email is considered the mandatory method of communication with our customers. The customer is responsible for providing the correct contact email at the origin and destination. Failure to receive our email for any reason may result in a sea freight shipment delay and/or extra charges, and/or other problems. If a client does not receive our email as expected, it is the client's responsibility to contact us and find a reason for not receiving it.
Our employees are trained and responsible for ensuring the quality of freight forwarding of particular cargoes. We cannot educate our clients on all aspects of international cargo transportation, the conditions, and shipping procedures.
We build a wide library of shipping references and answers to FAQs on our website. We strongly recommend reading these shipping references and FAQs. Before contacting us with questions, customers must obtain a shipping price quote or booking reference number on our website in an email. Without such a reference number, i.e., not having information on a particular sea freight shipment, we will most likely be unable to answer questions.
SHIPPING DOCUMENTS AND INSTRUCTIONS
Shippers are held responsible for cargo description, the legality of the commodity, and the sufficiency of shipping documents submitted to international sea freight shipments. We are not responsible for any information shippers submit in their shipping documents. Shippers are responsible for providing all necessary documents related to their ocean freight shipments required by the origin and destination country officials.
All export shipping documents MUST be completed by the shipper and sent to us before the cargo is delivered to the ocean freight carrier's possession. Failure to complete shipping documents may result in shipment delay, storage charges, increased shipping costs, and/or other penalties.
Our customers should schedule international ocean freight shipments online and receive our emails with complete shipping instructions. Customers must follow these shipping instructions. Failure to follow these shipping instructions may result in cancellation, delay, and/or unpredictable charges and penalties. We will NOT be held responsible for any issues that may occur due to failure to follow our shipping instructions.
PICKUPS AND LINE HAUL
Pickup and line-haul rates depend on the pickup site and commodity type. When shippers request quotes or bookings, they MUST select the proper type of pickup site and commodity type. Choosing an incorrect pickup site or/and commodity type may change shipping prices.
Residential or business with limited access pickup is a curbside service. The driver will load freight from a driveway, front porch, garage, or acceptable loading area. No inside service is permitted. Some additional shipping charges may apply if pickup conditions or areas are out of regular range. Such shipping charges will be calculated and forwarded to shippers in our final or a separate invoice. The following shipping charges may occur but are not limited to attempted pickup, debris removal, inside pick up, waiting time, etc.
Detention (waiting time) charges: With pickup or line-haul shipping services, detention or waiting time charges may occasionally occur. A detention/waiting time charge means an LTL carrier's truck delivers cargo to an ocean freight carrier's terminal (CFS), but the CFS is overloaded. Then, the truck stays in line for an uncertain time. It may take hours. LTL carrier's tariffs require paying detention charges by the shipper. Typically $90.00 per hour. If detention charges occur, we will forward these charges to the shipper to be paid upon a copy of the LTL carrier's invoice.
Dimensional Weight: Pickup and line-haul freight are based either on the Actual or Dimensional weight of cargo, whichever is greater.
Freight Class: Freight Class is the freight category defined by the U.S. National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA). It is also referred to as NMFC: National Motor Freight Classification. Higher freight classes are subject to higher shipping costs on ground cargo transportation. When shipping NMFC-rated shipments, the shipper MUST be assured that the freight class provided is accurate. Shippers may call the NMFTA at (703) 838-1810 to reconfirm freight class on their shipments by commodity descriptions. The shipper is held responsible for freight class declaration. Pickup and line-haul shipping price quotes are based on the freight class. Declaration of incorrect freight class may result in a shipping price schedule change.
SHIPPING OF FOODSTUFF, WINE, DRUGS, AND OTHER RESTRICTED COMMODITIES
International shipping of foodstuff, including wine and drugs (any edible item), edible animal byproducts, supplements, and other restricted commodities, is subject to detailed regulations. Violations of these regulations may result in detention, confiscation, or destruction of cargo, as well as in fines and criminal charges. Shippers ' responsibilities include determining restricted commodities, the proper documentation, providing licenses and permits, etc. Any costs and fees that may occur on prohibited commodities are on the shipper/consignee's account.
OCEAN FREIGHT BILL OF LADING
The Ocean Freight Bill of Lading is the final shipping document received from a freight forwarder. Consider the Ocean Freight Bill of Lading a title on your international shipment. Ocean Freight Bill of Lading transfers ownership of shipped goods to the consignee. Find more about the Ocean Freight Bill of Lading at this link.
By default, all international sea freight shipments with us are on express releases. Express = Telex Release means the consignee does not have to provide an original ocean freight bill of ladings to claim shipped goods at the destination. An international ocean freight shipment on express release should be released at the destination upon providing a copy of the ocean freight bill of lading received from us in a PDF file. No originals are required.
Several countries, particularly Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, and Certain African countries do not accept ocean freight bills of ladings on express releases. Ocean freight carriers should specify that upon the issue of a bill of lading. If applicable, we should receive from the carrier and mail a set of original ocean freight bills of ladings to an authorized party via USPS First Class Mail within the USA/Canada for free. Expedited or international mail MUST be prepaid. If a customer requires a set of originals of ocean freight bill of lading for a shipment to a country that accepts express releases, we will request the carrier for such a possibility. A $50 fee will be added to the mail's cost if possible.
Amendment in ocean freight bill of ladings: After a bill of lading has been issued, amendments in the bill of lading may not always be possible. We strongly recommend paying extreme attention to the information entered when booking a shipment. There should be several opportunities to verify the data while processing a load at the origin. As soon as an ocean freight bill of lading is issued, and amendments are still possible, the amendments may be subject to an amendment fee. Such a fee varies from $70 to $200+.
The completion of our service: Issuing the ocean freight bill of lading means that the service provided to a customer is completed as agreed. We may continue supporting customers till the cargo arrives at the destination. However, as soon as the cargo leaves the U.S. commerce zone, as a U.S. freight forwarder, we will not be able to impact the shipment.
Suppose an international ocean freight shipment has been paid by credit card(s) before issuing an ocean freight bill of lading. In that case, we will ask for an email confirmation that the payer understands that the ocean freight bill of lading is our final shipping document on this shipment. It is the title on shipped goods, and proof of the transfer of the ownership of the imported goods to the consignee stated on the ocean freight bill of lading (the recipient of shipped goods). The email will confirm that upon receipt of the bill of lading, our service is completed as agreed. All parties that may be concerned about the payment(s) on the shipment made by credit card(s) will consider this email the receipt of this payment(s) with the payer's signature in it.
DISCREPANCY IN INVOICES ON SEA FREIGHT FROM OCEAN CARRIERS. SMALL DISCREPANCY +/- $25.
As a U.S. OTI – Ocean Transportation Intermediary, a U.S. Freight Forwarder, we work on a flat service fee added to freight cost from direct and indirect ocean freight carriers with whom we work and have accounts, contracts, and/or shipping agreements. We DO NOT add commissions on top of the ocean freight from sea freight carriers. Our database contains these ocean freight rates/sea freight tariffs, which are constantly updated. However, due to the vast amount of data, GRI, continuous changes in BAF, CAF, etc., actual ocean freight rates/tariffs from carriers may slightly differ from those published online.
In our practice, we do our best to honor our offers to clients. If updated ocean freight rates/tariffs from sea freight carriers differ from ocean freight rates in our offers +/- $25, then our invoices indicate the discrepancy by default and ignore that. However, if a difference is significant, we may inform our client about the discrepancy and consider resolving such issues in case-by-case scenarios. THE EXEMPTION is the increasing ocean freight rates due to incorrect information on an ocean freight shipment submitted by the client. Refer to RISKY SHIPMENTS below.
TRANSIT TIME IN OCEAN FREIGHT
ETT - Estimated Transit Time (shipping time) in ocean freight quotes are not precise and should be verified upon a booking request. Transit time in booking confirmations for international ocean freight shipments CAN NOT be guaranteed. If there are changes in the transit time announced by carriers, we will do our best to inform shippers about the changes in our updates email ASAP.
WOODING PACKING, PALLETIZING, W/M, AND INSURANCE
Shippers should know shipping conditions on wooding packing, palletizing, weight/measurements (w/m), insurance, and related charges. References to these shipping conditions can be found on our website. If this is not enough, the shipper may ask us for clarification or learn more about these shipping conditions from other sources.
SHIPPING PARTIAL CARGO. COMBINING TWO OR MORE CARGO DELIVERIES/DOCK RECEIPTS INTO ONE SINGLE SHIPMENT/BILL OF LADING
In respect of LCL service, a partial shipment is the number of smaller cargo deliveries that need to be combined into one single international LCL sea freight shipment. An example is several smaller U.S. eBay or Amazon purchases, delivered to a Container Freight Station (CFS) in the USA, to be consolidated and shipped as one international LCL shipment.
Typically, each LCL shipment (and the one related to the shipment booking and customer reference number) is connected to one single cargo delivery (and related to the delivery CFS's warehouse receipt). Each cargo delivery to CFS should be automatically released for shipping to the destination overseas without any additional notices.
Suppose a shipper needs to combine several cargo deliveries into one shipment (and a bill of lading related to the shipment). In that case, it must be requested when booking and approved by us in writing in an email. If approved, then partial shipments are subject to AMID Logistics, LLC's partial shipments fee of $35 per every additional cargo delivery (warehouse receipt) on top of the first delivery. Ocean freight carrier's storage, handling, documentation, etc., fees may also apply.
Important: Some international ocean freight carriers do not offer partial shipment service. If a partial shipment is not approved by AMID Logistics, LLC, at the time of booking, then every cargo delivery to CFS will proceed regularly, such as a single shipment.
Please contact AMID Logistics, LLC in advance for more details regarding partial international LCL shipments.
DEALING WITH SEA FREIGHT CARRIER'S DESTINATION AGENT
When shipping freight with a U.S. freight forwarder, upon cargo arriving at the destinations, customers should be prepared to deal directly with the ocean freight carrier's destination agents. A U.S. freight forwarder cannot impact shipments when cargo leaves the U.S. Commerce zone. While cargo enters the Commerce zone of the destination country, the carrier's destination agent should handle the cargo recovery. Contact information of the destination agents is available on the ocean freight bill of ladings.
DESTINATION CHARGES
All international sea freight shipments are subject to destination charges. Destination charges (also called "local charges") occur at the destinations. Therefore they are not considered freight charges. These charges vary according to the destination country, port of entry, and ocean freight carrier. These charges are NOT included in the ocean freight. As a U.S. freight forwarder, AMID Logistics does not connect to destination charges in any way. Destination charges can be assessed on/after the day shipped goods are entered into the destination country's Commerce zone. The consignee must clear their sea freight shipment through customs at the designated port of entry and pay all costs related to the cargo release directly to parties involved in their import recovery.
In general, destination charges include (but are not limited to): 1. Destination Country Government (Customs) related charges, i.e., duty and taxes (if any), harbor fees, fee on entry filed by a destination Customs Broker, etc.; 2. Destination terminal(s) handling charges (THC) and other expenses related to cargo de-consolidation at the destination; 3. 'Door delivery' charges (if consignee requests a "door delivery")*.
*There is no "door delivery" service offered. Cleared with destination country Customs and released by the destination freight terminal (CFS), cargo must be self-picked from the CFS. Most ocean freight carrier's destination agents/terminals offer domestic cargo delivery services to get cargo delivered "to the door" for an additional cost. Otherwise, the consignee may hire a local trucking company to pick up released goods from the CFS to be delivered "to the consignee's door."
Depending on the port of entry, cargo may continue traveling to the final destination cleared with customs. Otherwise, it will be transported in a bond and must be cleared with customs at the destination country's bonded freight terminal (CFS). I.e., destination charges may be divided by separate invoices related to particular parties involved in the import recovery.
Sea freight carrier's destination agents should typically guide consignees in import recovery procedures. Otherwise, importers must search for a Customs broker in the destination country. However, regardless of who implements custom clearance and obtains freight release on the importer's behalf, the consignee must meet the obligations and laws of cargo entry, get ocean freight release, and pay all associated charges.
All operational costs and charges until the freight is eventually recovered will be debited to the consignee, with recourse against the consigner for any unpaid invoices.
INSURANCE
Insurance in our business is optional. AMID Logistics, LLC is NOT an insurance provider. AMID Logistics, LLC is NOT responsible for any damages or loss, missing cargo, etc. We hold several accounts with marine insurance providers, and upon the customer's request, we should be able to obtain an insurance certificate on the customer's behalf. Then, in the event of an insurance claim:
For more information, refer to the Marine insurance web page and read the insurance certificate attached to our invoice in a PDF file.
PAYMENT TERM AND RETURN POLICY
Typically we invoice our customers in an email on/in a few days after ETD (estimated day of departure). The payment term is 5 (five) calendar days from the day of issuing our invoice in an email. However, if agreed in writing in advance, payment terms may vary depending on the type of shipping service and shipper's credit with us. Our return policy is published on this website.
In our business practice, email is considered the mandatory method of communication with our customers. All freight invoices are issued via email. If, for any reason, a customer does not receive our email as expected, it is the customer's responsibility to contact us to find a reason for not receiving the email.
PAYMENTS VIA PAYPAL
If not agreed in advance in writing in an email, payments via PayPal are limited by US$750.00 on the TOTAL shipping cost. Payments (full or partial) related to shipments with a total shipping cost exceeding US$750 CAN NOT be made via PayPal. Such shipments must be paid by an original (business or personal) check, a draft of the check online, money order, wire, direct bank transfer, or Western Union.
We reserve the right to refund unauthorized PayPal payments, less than a non-refundable PayPal transaction fee, plus a $50 refund processing fee without notice.
If we authorize a PayPal transaction, but the transaction is not covered by PayPal seller protection, we reserve the right to refund such a transaction less the non-refundable PayPal transaction fee.
The email confirmation to PayPal payments: To secure funds transferred via PayPal, before issuing an ocean carriers bill of lading, we always ask in an email to the PayPal account holder for a confirmation that the payer clearly understands that the ocean freight bill of lading is our final document on their shipment. It is the title on the shipped goods and proof of the transfer of their ownership to the consignee, as in the ocean freight bill of lading (to the recipient of imported goods).
By properly replying to our email, the PayPal account holder confirms that upon receipt of the ocean freight bill of lading, our service provided will be completed as agreed. All parties concerned about the PayPal payment(s) should consider this reply email as the payment(s) receipt with the payer's signature on it.
If for any reason, we will not receive a proper reply from the PayPal account holder to our email, then the issuing of the bill of leading may be suspended, and the shipment is considered risky.
PROCESSING OCEAN FREIGHT SHIPMENTS UPON A COPY OF CHECK OR MONEY ORDER
To expedite an ocean freight shipment process, we can proceed with an ocean freight shipment upon receipt of a scanned or faxed copy of the check or money order. The shipper may fax or email us a copy of the check or money order. We will confirm receipt of the copy in the email. A copy of a U.S. bank check may be considered the payer's authorization for electronic funds transfer. In the event of a delay in receiving the original check in the mail, typically later than 10 (ten) calendar days after receiving the copy, we reserve the right to process the funds' transfer based on the amount and payer's bank information on the copy of the check.
FAILURE TO PAY FREIGHT INVOICE
The shipment cannot be processed if a new customer does not pay a deposit. Customers with settled credits process shipments as agreed.
As soon as shipping goods depart from the USA and the ocean freight carrier's express release bill of lading is generated, on/in a few days after the departure, we email the party responsible for the shipment our invoice less a deposit already paid. PAYMENT DUE IS UPON RECEIPT OF THE INVOICE.
IF OUR INVOICE IS NOT RECEIVED IN A FEW WORKING DAYS AFTER THE ETD (ESTIMATED TIME OF DEPARTURE), THEN DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT US TO CLARIFY.
If our invoice is not paid a few days after the issuing, we may email a few reminders. If our invoice is still unpaid after the final reminder, we will consider the shipment risky. The late payment fee will apply. The late payment fee is 3% per day on the total due in the invoice / US$200 minimum, whichever is greater.
If not paid within 10 (ten) calendar days after the late fee is applied, we may cancel express release on the shipment. As a result of the express release cancellation, the consignee will not be able to recover their goods at the destination unless they receive from us a set of original bills of ladings. Expedited mail with the set of originals costs US$200 on top of other charges related to issuing the set of originals. We will NOT take any responsibility for any storage, demurrage, and additional charges connected to the cargo release delays. We will NOT accept any responsibility for any costs related to any freight delay at any point on its way to the place of the release. Cargo insurance, if initially requested, will be canceled, and the paid insurance premiums will apply toward the risky shipment penalties.
Disputing an invoice does not extend the payment due. All disputing correspondence must be written in email and kept as evidence of the disputing. We do not discuss invoices over the phone.
If not paid within 30 days from the day of the arrival to the destination, the international shipment may be considered abandoned, i.e., requested to be destroyed or re-consigned and repossessed and sold on the action to cover expenses related to the freight, storage, demurrage, etc. charges. U.S. and destination country's security officials will be notified, and additional fines will be levied.
UNLESS OUR INVOICE IS PAID, WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO ASSIST THE SHIPPER, CONSIGNEE, OR ANY THIRD PARTY RELATED TO THE SHIPMENT IN ANY ISSUES.
RISKY SHIPMENTS
In certain circumstances, we keep the right to reconsider any regular ocean freight shipment to a RISKY SHIPMENT at any time. Risky shipment can be considered for the following reasons (but not limited by these reasons only): suspicious money transfers or bounced checks, incomplete or incorrect consigner/consignee information submitted to the shipment, discrepancy in estimated volume and weight submitted in a booking request against actual volume and weight retrieved by ocean freight carrier more than 50%, the incorrect type of commodity, commodity description and/or pickup location declared in the initial booking request, failures to submit proper shipping documentation and/or information required by ocean freight carrier and/or U.S. Customs, failures to pay our invoices or proper reply to our email to reconfirm payments via PayPal, force majeure, etc.
Terms and conditions on risky ocean freight shipments will differ from terms and conditions on regular ocean freight shipping, as published on this web page. Terms and conditions on risky shipments will be amended depending on a particular situation. Changes in terms and conditions on risky ocean freight shipments can be as follows (but not limited by): changes in cargo acceptance requirements, changes in payment methods and terms, changes in release conditions, amendments in ocean freight bill of ladings, our freight invoices, etc.
Once we consider an international ocean freight shipment risky, the customer will be notified by email. As long as a customer is informed, no verbal agreements or commitments can be accepted. All communication regarding risky shipments must be documented in writing and may be used as evidence.
CANCELLATION OF SERVICE, REFUNDS.
International ocean freight shipments with unpaid deposits will not be processed. There is no obligation to cancel a shipment with an unpaid deposit. Clients that have an account with us, please refer to our agreement.
If an international ocean freight carrier has not processed a shipment and cargo can still be put on hold and returned to the shipper, please refer to our return policy.
After the ocean freight carrier has processed a shipment and the shipment cannot be returned to the shipper, i.e., cargo is on the way to the destination: consolidated in the container or entered into the international ocean carrier's container yard or pier to be loaded aboard a vessel, a refund cannot be provided.
|
|
