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Dear Valued Customer,
This is to announce that the new tariff rule FMC000138-042 23-Y SOLAS Verified Gross Mass Rule will take effective from July 1, 2016. Please kindly be noted the followings and enclosed for more detail procedures.
MANDATORY SUBMISSION OF VERIFIED GROSS MASS BY SHIPPER
A. SOLAS REQUIREMENTS
Effective July 1, 2016, the Safety of Life at Sea Convention of 1974 (“SOLAS”) requires that the person named as shipper on the ocean carrier bill of lading or equivalent document and/or who has concluded a contract of carriage with Carrier (hereinafter, the “Shipper”) provide Carrier with the verified gross mass (“VGM”) of containers to be transported by vessel. Under SOLAS, the Shipper may obtain the VGM by either (1) weighing the packed container using calibrated and certified equipment; or (2) weighing all packages and cargo items, including the mass of pallets, dunnage and other securing material to be packed in the container and adding the tare mass of the container to the sum of the single masses, using a certified scale approved by the competent authority of the jurisdiction in which packing of the container was completed. In certain jurisdictions, authorities may also determine alternative methods of determining the VGM to be compliant with SOLAS. SOLAS requires the VGM be submitted to the Carrier sufficiently in advance to be used in preparation of the vessel stowage plan. SOLAS prohibits Carrier from loading containers for which no VGM is provided.
B. PROVISION OF VGM
1. Time for Submitting VGM
In order to enable Carrier to comply with the requirements of SOLAS described above, Shipper or its authorized agent must provide Carrier with the VGM of cargo tendered to Carrier, calculated in accordance with applicable legal requirements, no later than the following deadlines:
(a) For cargo tendered to Carrier or its agent/contractor at the marine terminal no later than the VGM cut- off date which shall be determined by the applicable marine terminal.
(b) For cargo tendered to Carrier or its agent/contractor at an inland facility (including ramp or Shipper’s facility), no later than the date the cargo is received by the Carrier at such facility.
2. Form of VGM
Shipper or its authorized agent shall submit VGM in any one of the following formats:
(i) EDI message (VERMAS, 304 message)
(ii) Yang Ming’s web portal
SOLAS requires that the VGM data submitted by Shipper indicate that the weight provided is the VGM and that it be signed by a person duly authorized by Shipper. Shipper or its agent may fulfill this signature requirement as follows:
(i) In the case of VGM provided via EDI, by including the name of the duly authorized person in CAPITAL LETTERS in the EDI information; or
(ii) In the case of VGM provided via electronic transmission (e.g., email, email- attachment or fax) or physical delivery of a hard copy document, by including a physical signature of the duly authorized person in the document or by including an electronic signature of the duly authorized person in the document (e.g., “signed by NAME IN CAPITAL LETTERS”), whichever is applicable.
The foregoing signature shall constitute a warranty by the individual that it is authorized to sign such document on behalf of Shipper.
C. DISCREPANCIES BETWEEN VGM AND SUBSEQUENTLY DETERMINED WEIGHT; ADMINISTRATIVE FEE
Carrier (including its agents/contractors) may, but is not under any obligation, to weigh cargo for which a VGM has been received. If the weight determined by Carrier or any other subcontractor differs from the VGM received from the Shipper or its agent, Carrier shall replace the VGM on all shipping documents with the weight determined by Carrier. In the event it is necessary to revise shipping documents pursuant to this Rule, an administrative fee of $25 per container for each container for which the shipping documents had to be revised shall be payable to Carrier, with such fee to be for the account of the cargo and payable as additional freight.
D. FAILURE TO TIMELY SUBMIT VGM; NON-COMPLIANCE
If a loaded container is received without a VGM or if the VGM is not received by the deadline established under this rule, or if the Carrier determines at its discretion to weigh the loaded container due to non-compliance of SOLAS, Carrier shall have the option to either:
(i) Refuse to load the container until a VGM is supplied by Shipper, in which case any and all costs, fees, expenses, damages and/or penalties of every and any type, nature or source shall be for the account of the cargo, and shall be payable to Carrier as additional freight; or
(ii) Weigh the cargo on behalf of the Shipper and use that weight in lieu of the VGM, in which case a charge of $300 per container, or the actual costs incurred by the Carrier in weight such container in case such cost is higher, shall apply for the account of the cargo, and shall be payable to Carrier as additional freight.
If a loaded container is denied admission to a marine terminal facility or rail ramp, whichever is applicable, due to the lack of a VGM or non-compliance with SOLAS, all costs, as noted herein, and any other costs and expense arising from the consequences of such denial shall be for the account of the Shipper and/or cargo.
The respective tariff filings can be found under Carrier Tariff No. 000138-042, Rule No. 23-Y
We thank you for your business and continued support. If you have any questions regarding this information, please contact your Yang Ming sales representative.
Thank you,
Yang Ming (America) Corp
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