Abstract: Ocean bill of lading plays a very important role in international trade, which is determined by its nature. The bill of lading is proof of the ownership of the goods. Whoever controls the bill of lading has the ownership of the goods. However, in international trade, the use of bill of lading also brings various risks. Through the in-depth analysis of the risks of ocean bill of lading, the corresponding preventive measures are put forward.

Keywords: marine bill of lading risk prevention measures

The bill of lading is one of the important documents in the international carriage of goods by sea. Article 72 of China's Maritime Code stipulates: "The bill of lading is a document that proves the contract of carriage of goods by sea and that the goods have been received by the carrier or the ship, and the carrier reserves the evidence of delivery of the goods." Paragraph 7 of article 1 of Hamburg Rules defines the bill of lading as: "A bill of lading is a document that proves that the contract of carriage by sea and the goods have been received or loaded by the carrier, and the carrier guarantees to deliver the goods accordingly. The function of the bill of lading is mainly reflected in three aspects: 1, which indicates the receipt of the goods and proves that the carrier or its agent has received the goods according to the contents listed in the bill of lading; 2. The certificate indicating the ownership of the goods, the consignee or the legal holder of the bill of lading has the right to pick up the goods from the carrier by the bill of lading, or transfer them before the delivery of the carrier ship at the destination port, or apply for a mortgage loan from the bank; 3. The documents showing the conclusion of the transport agreement between the shipper and the carrier are the main basis for them to deal with the rights and obligations of both parties in the transport. In addition, the ocean bill of lading is also one of the most important documents for exporters to submit to the bank for negotiation under the letter of credit. Among all transport documents, only it can represent the ownership of the goods transported and can be freely transferred and circulated. The importance of ocean bill of lading in international trade has been targeted and exploited by some lawless elements. In recent years, there have been many cases of forging and tampering with ocean bills of lading to defraud money in international trade. Moreover, with the continuous development of China's foreign trade and the continuous promotion and use of letters of credit, the fraud cases of ocean bills of lading emerge one after another, and the fraud methods are changing with each passing day. Therefore, many foreign companies put the risk prevention of ocean bill of lading on the agenda.

1. Common risk types of ocean bills of lading

Take precautions before they happen. The risks of ocean bill of lading in international trade mainly include:

(1) Countersign and Advance Borrowing of Bill of Lading

The on-board bill of lading should be issued after all the goods are loaded, and the date of issuance must be true, because the date of issuance of the bill of lading is regarded as the date of shipment. If the bill of lading is issued after the goods are shipped, but the date of issuance is earlier than the actual date of shipment, it constitutes an anti-dated bill of lading. If the goods have not been fully shipped or have been accepted by the carrier before shipment, a bill of lading is issued, which constitutes an advance bill of lading. The shipper's purpose is to make the issuing date of the bill of lading conform to the provisions of the letter of credit and settle foreign exchange smoothly, but it constitutes conspiracy fraud to the consignee and may cause the consignee to suffer heavy losses. In this regard, the laws and maritime customs of various countries are not allowed.

I promised.

(2) Forged bills of lading

The bill of lading is the main document required by the letter of credit. In the letter of credit business, as long as the documents meet the requirements of the letter of credit, the bank relies on the cash of the documents and does not examine the source and authenticity of the documents. Some unscrupulous businessmen take advantage of the characteristics of letters of credit, that is, "the documents are strictly consistent" and forge bills of lading to defraud the payment. Maybe the goods were not delivered at all, or they were shoddy and cheated customers, which brought great losses to the enterprise.

(3) Exchange letter of guarantee for clean bill of lading

In international trade, it often happens that the carrier wants to issue an unclean bill of lading for the shipment goods with poor appearance. Because banks don't accept unclean bills of lading, shippers can't settle foreign exchange on this basis, so they often issue unclean bills of lading to carriers, let them issue clean bills of lading, and guarantee to compensate carriers for issuing clean bills of lading.

In exchange for a clean bill of lading, the settlement of foreign exchange was smooth. It can be seen that the letter of guarantee is issued for the needs of international trade. In a sense, both the shipper and the carrier can get certain convenience and benefits, but in fact, there are great risks for the carrier. Once the consignee claims against the carrier against the clean bill of lading, the carrier must pay the consignee. However, whether the carrier can get compensation when claiming from the shipper by the letter of guarantee depends on whether the shipper's reputation and the reasons for needing compensation are completely consistent with the insurance items in the letter of guarantee. Moreover, the carrier's failure to issue the bill of lading according to the actual situation of the goods has violated the principle of good faith in civil activities, which often constitutes collusion with the shipper and fraud against the bona fide consignee. If the carrier brings a lawsuit, any fraudulent contract, agreement or guarantee is not legally binding according to the law. Therefore, the court will not judge the responsible party for the loss of goods under the letter of guarantee according to the letter of guarantee, nor can the carrier recover the losses suffered by the consignee or the holder of the bill of lading from the shipper.

(4) Delivery without bill of lading

_ The ocean bill of lading is a document of ownership. After the goods arrive at the port of destination, the carrier is obliged to hand them over to the holder of the original bill of lading. But in actual business, sometimes the goods will arrive before the transport documents, which is very common in trade with Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Because the consignee doesn't have the original bill of lading, it can't pick up the goods and resell or sell them in time, which will lead to a series of problems such as the cost of goods, quality changes and market price fluctuations. In this case, it is customary to solve it by ensuring delivery. That is, the consignee provides the shipping company with a written letter of guarantee countersigned by the bank, requiring that the goods should be picked up first and then the bill of lading should be supplemented, without the title certificate. However, if the carrier gives the goods to the holder of the non-original bill of lading, it may cause wrong delivery and constitute infringement to the holder of the bill of lading. In the process of delivery without bill of lading, it is not necessarily the buyer of the sales contract who picks up the goods, but it may be an impostor, the consignee is often difficult to find, and there may be the possibility of the ship stealing the goods. therefore

Delivery without bill of lading is very risky. Shipping agents release goods by letter of guarantee instead of bill of lading, which is an act of taking risks and protecting themselves from danger.

Two. Precautionary measures against risks of bill of lading

(a) put an end to or strictly grasp the advance bill of lading and reverse bill of lading.

Countersigning or borrowing bills of lading to settle foreign exchange in advance will damage the image of foreign trade enterprises and the reputation of Sinotrans, and may cause economic losses. At present, China's ports are crowded and the shipping schedule is not allowed. Export enterprises should fully consider these factors when signing contracts, booking shipping spaces and delivering goods. At the same time, strengthen the management of all aspects of contract performance, strengthen cooperation with relevant departments, and try to get the cooperation of customers in advance when necessary. If you have to borrow the bill of lading in advance, you should pay attention to prevent the actual loading ship from being inconsistent with the name of the ship on the bill of lading in advance, such as refitting another ship due to insufficient shipping space or delayed goods. Once this happens,

Under the circumstances, we should take urgent measures to recover the whole set of documents decisively and repair them again, and we must never take any chances. As far as legal liability is concerned, the exporter's settlement of foreign exchange by advance loan bill of lading has constituted a forgery of the date of shipment. Once the other party finds out the truth, the breaching party must bear certain legal responsibilities. If the exporter provides a "clean bill of lading" to be loaded on board A, but the goods are loaded on board B, it can be proved that the exporter borrowed the bill of lading without careful investigation in advance. Only on this basis can the importer refuse to pay for the goods and lodge a claim. Countersigning the bill of lading is a conspiracy of the shipper and the carrier to deceive the consignee, so the injured party can ask the seller to be responsible and the carrier to be responsible. The legal consequences of this behavior are not only for the seller, but also for the buyer.

The carriers are serious. In order to prevent the occurrence of backdated bills of lading, exporters should accurately understand the provisions on the time of shipment. For example, foreign letters of credit often have the following terms about the time of shipment: (1) at the latest: 3 1, July, that is, not later than July 3 1, including July 31; (2) Thank you no later than 3 1 and no later than July 3 1, including July 31; (3) The first half of July refers to the period from July 1 day to July 15, including the start and end dates; (4) In July, that is, during July, from July 1 to July 3 1, including the start and end dates; (5) The end of July, from July 2 1 to July 3 1, including the start and end dates; (6) On or before July 3 1 day, that is, on or before July 3 1 day; (7) About 3 1, which means that within 5 days before and after July 3 1, that is, from

From July 26th to August 5th. Exporters should ship in strict accordance with the provisions of the letter of credit and obtain clean bills of lading from appropriate channels to maintain a good reputation.

(2) Printing and using bills of lading that are difficult to forge.

The International Maritime Bureau suggests printing and using bills of lading that are difficult to forge and controlling their circulation. The paper quality and style of the bill of lading should be clearly and strictly stipulated.

(3) Choose a trading partner with good reputation.

In international trade, a comprehensive understanding of customers' credit information is the premise to ensure the smooth progress of business.

Conditions. If there is no good investigation to understand the credit status of the transaction object, only acquaintances introduce or

Greedy for petty gain often leads to accidents and regrets. The so-called good credit status includes two aspects:

First, the assets are in good condition, the assets are considerable, the operation is in good condition, and it has the ability to perform the contract; Second, it can perform the contract in good faith and will not tear it up at will.