In international shipping, an importer or exporter can never know with absolute certainty whether the shipment will reach its destination on time without deficiencies or damages, problems or delays, as well as without unnecessary and unexpected expenses. We have prepared a number of basic things for you here that will help reduce the risks.
General tips
Integrity without damage
Reduce the chances of damage or shortages to your shipment, take care of proper packaging and suitable for international transport. Packaging is supposed to protect the shipment from external factors, such as shaking, sharp movements, dust, moisture, exposure to the sun, etc. In an insurance case, the first thing that the appraiser on behalf of the insurance company will check is the integrity of the packaging. If your shipment contains many units such as boxes, cartons or any individual items, make sure that the packaging unites them all together, so the chances of these items being lost will decrease. You must make sure that the shipment has an appropriate marking, indicating how the shipment will be handled, for example the direction of its placement, or whether it can be stacked.
Arriving on time
Before making a decision on the method of transport, check with your forwarder what options are available to you considering the required delivery date. In the event that the shipment needs to arrive with utmost urgency, the air freight option is definitely the most preferred, but here too it is necessary to make sure that the flight is direct or at most with one intermediate stop. Remember - the shorter the flight time, the higher the price. The ocean freight option can also provide an adequate solution for urgent shipments, sometimes it is possible to transport by land to a loading port further away from which the sailing times are significantly shorter to the ports of Israel, such a combination of transport can match desired dates and of course save money compared to the air freight.
Unnecessary problems and expenses
Make sure to agree with the supplier the terms of sale, it is also mandatory to agree on a geographic point with an exact address/place to which the terms of sale you agreed will be subject. This is a clear point where responsibility, expenses and risks will be transferred from the exporter to the importer, so arguments about which of the parties pays for what can be reduced. Make sure that packaging or the surface on which the goods will arrive, which are made of solid wood, meet the requirements of the ISPM15 standard, which requires the disinfection of any such packaging, and that there is a unique marking indicating that the wooden packaging has been treated in accordance with the requirements of the standard. Check with a country from which you want to import that has signed a free trade agreement with Israel, that the product meets the rules of origin and the exporter can provide you with a certificate of origin for it. If the product meets the rules, you can benefit from an exemption or a reduction in the customs payment. Check with your customs broker if the product complies with the legality of importation and you have the permits required to release the goods.
Insurance
It is always recommended to insure the goods in international transport through a policy called "marine insurance" for insurance there are three levels of coverage, from the most basic which covers only specific and defined risks to a maximum level of coverage which covers almost every scenario with the exception of the exceptions. The price of the policy usually ranges around a quarter of a percent of the value of the goods, needless to say that this is a marginal price in relation to the risks to which the importer is exposed, and this is not only about damage to the cargo, but additional exposures that exist in international shipping, As an example: a ship that got into a dangerous situation and subsequently declared "General Average". The declaration has legal force obliging cargo owners to indemnify those who incurred unreasonable expenses Usually for the benefit of saving the ship or those whose property was sacrificed for the safety and security of stakeholders on the ship.
