Distinguish between Bill of Landing, Shipping Bill and Charter Party.

Bill of Lading:

It is a document that shipping company issues and helps in acknowledging the receipt of goods on board the ship. Terms and conditions on which goods are to be sent on destination part are also mentioned in a bill of lading. It is not possible to claim the goods without the bill of lading. It is necessary to produce the bill as soon as the goods reach the foreign port.

Such a bill is not negotiable because the bearer can never claim the goods in a better manner than the person who passed on the bill to him. If the bill gets stolen before being passed on, a legal conformation regarding the right to the goods would not be given. It is marked freight paid, if exporter pays the freight and freight forward, if freight is payable by importer of the goods.

Shipping Bill:

It is a document containing the description of the goods, the country from which they are exported, name of the vessel and port where goods are to be discharged, number of goods, quantity, value etc. It acts as a main document that is required by customs authorities with a view to grant permission for exports. It is of three types: a green bill, when duty drawback is allowed; a yellow bill for dutiable goods and a white bill for duty free goods.

Charter Party:

It is a contract of of freightment for chartering a whole ship or a major part of it. Charter party is basically an agreement with the shipping company. Exporter will charter a ship or a major part of it, if the consignment is very large and big. If the buyer has to make arrangements for transport, he should be informed about the dates on which the goods would be ready for movement.