How it works?
DocShipper have become increasingly important players: they have ceased their unique mission of shippers, accepting greater responsibilities as so much on the market. The main shipping companies have also switched to multimodal freight services;
Now, we provide customers with door-to-door service. The carrier shall return the goods to the address specified by the consignor (his premises or his domicile, general inland) to the address of the consignee (usually also inland). Freight forwarders not in possession of a ship (even if the carriage includes a portion of sea transport) are designated as non-ship carriers (NVOCs)
Multimodal transport was developed as part of the “Container Revolution” of the 1960s; As of 2019, public transport is by far the most popular international expedition. However, it is also important to remember that multimodal transport is different from container transport: indeed, multimodal transport is feasible without a container. MTO, which works directly with the customer, guarantees that its products are delivered with the greatest efficiency.
Legal aspect
From a purely legal point of view, multimodal transport has some shortcomings. Unimodal transport (one transport) is currently controlled by incoterms, which are international and mandatory conventions. These agreements provide different bases and limits of liability for the carrier.
Since 2011, the solution at this stage is the principle of “network”. According to this, the different conventions remain the same. The liability of the carrier is defined according to the violation of the contract (for example, the goods have been lost or damaged during transport). However, problems occur and the contract violation is repeated several times.
Difference between intermodal and multimodal shipment
First, let’s start with some definitions:
- Multimodal transport (also called combined transport) consists of carrying goods under one contract, but this transport will be carried out with minimum two different ways of transport; From a legal point of view, the carrier is responsible for all the transport, whether by rail, sea, or road, for example. The carrier must not possess all means of transport, but in general it does not; Transport is often handled by sub-carriers (the actual carriers legally speaking). The carrier which has the responsibility for the entire transport operation acts as a MTO (multimodal transport operator).
- Intermodal freight transport is defined as the transport of goods in an intermodal container or vehicle, while using several modes of transport (rail, ship and lorry), without any handling of cargo – even when changing modes of transport. This method is economical in terms of cargo management, which improves cargo security, reduces damage and losses, and also reduces transport time. The main advantage for inter-continental use is mainly the reduction of road transport costs. For road transport over shorter journey can be offset by reduced times.
How make a choice? What is the difference?
The main difference between those modes is the number of contracts that the sender possesses with different service suppliers.
- In a multimodal consignment, the consignor has a transport contract covering all modes of transport from departure to arrival, whether it is a port to port, port to port or from door to door. This is equivalent to a carrier for a single trip. This contract of carriage shall be borne by a carrier, whether it be a steamship line or an international freight forwarder / NVOCC. The steamship / shipping carrier or the international freight forwarder / NVOCC publish a intermodal or a multimodal transport bill of lading.
Advantages: The sender can consider the carrier as the sole responsible for transport in the event of a problem, up-to-date and follow-up updates come from the carrier and, as a result, delivery times can be satisfied.