How many practitioners actually understand the above terms? They appear twice in UCP 600: sub-articles 20 (c) (ii) and 21 (c) (ii) in respect of bills of lading and non-negotiable sea waybills (NNSW) respectively.
These sub-articles are in place to highlight that, even if a credit prohibits transhipment, a bill of lading or NNSW indicating that transhipment will or may take place is acceptable if the goods have been shipped in a container, trailer or LASH barge as evidenced by the document.
The first reference to containers appeared in UCP 290 article 23 with regard to unitised cargoes such as those on pallets or in containers, thereby reflecting advancements in the shipping industry.
The first reference to trailers and LASH barges appeared in UCP 400 article 29.
The term ‘container' will be known to most readers i.e., sealed, re-usable metal boxes allowing carriage by different modes of transport. Usage of containers can be dated as far back as the mid 1800's although, in those days, they were likely to be of wooden construct rather than metal. The metal container became more commonplace from the 1950's onwards, with ISO standards for containers being applied between 1968 and 1970 by the International Maritime Organisation.
A trailer, in the context of the transport of goods by road, applies to an unpowered vehicle, which is towed by another ‘motorised' vehicle.
LASH is an acronym for ‘Lighter Aboard Ship' and is a conveyance transported on board a larger vessel. A LASH barge is flat-bottomed and can be used for the shipment of goods on rivers and canals where a larger vessel cannot travel. It is commonly utilised to transport goods from a larger vessel that is too large to enter certain ports and was developed in the late 1960's for the transport of bulk cargoes. Some are powered and others are towed by another vessel such as a tugboat.