Terms & Conditions of Sale
All services and activities being performed by either ZUIDNATIE NV, ZUIDNATIE BREAKBULK NV or one of their related companies – such as but not limited to BECOMAR NV, FLATRACO BVBA and ZUIDNATIE TRANSPORT SERVICES NV – as Service Provider for its Principals are subject to and regulated by the respective industry standard (general) conditions & principles incorporated therein.
All rates, tariffs and offers issued for these services & activities refer to the applicable general conditions & contain a copy thereof as attachment.
To give a general insight, the main principles of these conditions are as follows:
- All services and activities being performed by logistics service providers, including terminal operators & their related activities operated out of the port of Antwerp, are as a whole covered by the GENERAL LOGISTIC CONDITIONS. Their scope of application covers and/or refers to road transportation (which is in Belgium regulated under the CMR convention as imperative law for both national as well as international transport), freight-forwarding (‘professional organization of transport’) and customs-agency (‘customs clearance administration’), long term storage-warehousing as well as handling of goods & unloading of means of transport (in this latter regard: see also point 2. below as this is more specifically regulated).It is important for both parties, being the logistics service provider on the one hand and its principal (‘the cargo interested parties’) on the other hand, that clear arrangements are made with regard to their cooperation in view of the cargo and services.
The Logistic Service Provider (‘LSP’) must – among others – timely perform the agreed services as well as inspect the goods upon reception in view of their general state & quantity (‘whether it corresponds to the instruction of the principal’). Same goes for any impact onto cargo during stay at the LSP’s premises.
The Principal will – among others – provide the LSP in due time all information concerning the goods and their handling, of which he knows or is deemed to know the significance to the LSP. Regarding dangerous goods, the Principal is expected to provide or communicate all documents and instructions as indicated in the conventions and prescriptions in this respect such as ADR, ADNR, IDMG, MSDS –files … . The Principal is responsible for the accuracy, correctness, completeness and reliability of the information, data and documents provided by himself or by third parties on his behalf.
The LSP is subject to a fault liability principle, meaning being liable for its (proven) fault resulting into cargo losses and/or damages. The LSP’s liability is limited to 8,33 special drawing rights (‘S.D.R.’) per kilogram of lost or damaged goods with the absolute maximum of 25.000 EUR per event (or series of events having the same cause).
For further details, a copy of the GENERAL LOGISTIC CONDITIONS (in English, French, German and Dutch) can be found here. - For stevedoring, landside and related activities (such as but not limited to the (un)loading of means of transport, handling of cargo, shifting of cargo to/from place of rest) the ABAS KVBG general conditions for the handling of goods and related activities in the port of Antwerp apply. A more detailed description of its scope of application can be found under its article 2.Cargo interested parties are expected to have their goods adequately packed & protected in view of normal cargo handling – unless it is customary not to pack the goods. It is a requirement to have the cargo be marked by its main characteristics & lifting points/manner indications, as well as to timely forward, in writing, any deviating/specific handling instructions & liftings plans.
The stevedore is subject to a fault liability principle, meaning being liable for its (proven) faults resulting into cargo losses and/or damages. The liability is limited to 2 EUR per kilogram – for steel products a liability limitation of 1.000 EUR per package will be taken into account – with a general cap of liability of 25.000 EUR per incident (or series of incidents having the same cause).
For further details, a copy of the ABAS KVBG general conditions (In English, French, German and Dutch) can be found here. - Mere Freight Forwarding activities are in principle performed as ‘agent’ under the applicability of the BELGIAN FREIGHT FORWARDERS STANDARD TRADING CONDITIONS. The Freight Forwarder shall act as intermediary between the Customer/Principal and the effective service provider with regard to the services to be performed towards the Principal’s goods/cargo at hand.The Principal is expected to supply to the Freight Forwarder any useful information including, but not limited to, the nature of the goods, the method of shipment, the place of taking over and delivery, and the required route and procedure, and in particular any information which the Principal may be presumed to have at his disposal as manufacturer, merchant, owner or consignor of the goods, and which may ensure their preservation, shipment, taking over at the place of departure and delivery at the place of destination.
The Freight Forwarder’s liability shall be limited to that for fault, negligence or omission in the performance of the instructions given to him. To the extent that such fault, negligence or omission has caused any direct material damage or financial loss to the Customer or third parties, the Freight Forwarder’s liability shall be limited to € 5 per kilogram gross weight of the goods lost or damaged, with a maximum of € 25,000 per contract.
For further details, a copy of the BELGIAN FREIGHT FORWARDERS STANDARD TRADING CONDITIONS (In English, French, German and Dutch) can be found here.
Notwithstanding which services are being performed and which conditions apply between the LSP and the Principal:
- Cargo interested parties are always advised and/or expected to have their goods insured against common risks (‘all risk cargo insurance’) – risks to be borne without any action and/or intervention (thus liability) from the terminal operator – for example theft, flooding, whirlwind, natural disaster, explosion and fire (whatever the cause may be);
- For the execution of transport orders for containers within the port area, we reserve the right to freely choose the transport mode, including rail and barging;
- Regarding non-standardized attachment of lifting gear (i.e. heavy lift and project cargo), we must always, and no later than 24 hours before start of operations, be in possession of an adequate indication of the lifting points, a lifting plan and/or any further details that contribute to safe cargo handling;
- Special attention should be paid to the obligations of the shipper/cargo interested parties regarding adequate packaging of the goods, with indication of correct weights and center of gravity. Among other in view of safe handling and securing of cargo.