A bill of lading is a contract between you, the owner of the goods, and the carrier stating what goods you\u2019re shipping, where the shipment is coming from and where it\u2019s headed. It also serves as a receipt issued by the carrier once your shipment is picked up. The\u00a0bill of lading (sometimes abbreviated as\u00a0B\/L\u00a0or\u00a0BOL) is a document issued by a\u00a0carrier\u00a0(or their\u00a0agent) to acknowledge receipt of\u00a0cargo\u00a0for\u00a0shipment. Although the term historically related only to carriage by sea, a bill of lading may today be used for any type of carriage of goods. Bills of lading are one of three crucial documents used in\u00a0international trade\u00a0to ensure that\u00a0exporters\u00a0receive payment and\u00a0importers\u00a0receive the merchandise.\u00a0The other two documents are a\u00a0policy of insurance\u00a0and an\u00a0invoice.[a]\u00a0Whereas a bill of lading is negotiable, both a policy and an invoice are\u00a0assignable. In international trade outside the United States, bills of lading are distinct from\u00a0waybills\u00a0in that the latter are not transferable and do not confer title. Nevertheless, the UK\u00a0Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992\u00a0grants \u201call rights of suit under the contract of carriage\u201d to the lawful holder of a bill of lading, or to the Consignee under a sea waybill or a ship\u2019s delivery order. A bill of lading must be transferable, and serves three main functions: it is a conclusive receipt,\u00a0i.e. an acknowledgement that the goods have been loaded; and it contains or evidences\u00a0the terms of the contract of carriage; and it serves as a document of title to the goods, subject to the\u00a0nemo dat\u00a0rule. In short, the BoL is a Transportation document that is the contract of carriage containing the terms and conditions between the Shipper and carrier. Disclaimer Our content is not in any way legal advice or binding. The information provided by might not be the official legal or full definition. Also when pursuing a specific transaction you are encouraged to conduct your own due diligence and to consult legal counsel as appropriate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","class_list":["post-20249","logistics_term","type-logistics_term","status-publish","hentry","wpbf-post"],"yoast_head":"\n