Documents Lost in Transit: Must the Issuing Bank Honour If the Nominated Bank Retained No Copies? Introduction Article 35 of UCP 600 protects a nominated bank when documents are lost in transit after it has determined that the presentation is complying. But what happens if the documents are later found to have been discrepant, or the nominated bank cannot prove that it examined them because it retained no copies? The following question explores an important practical … Read More
Bill of Lading Shows an Incomplete Email Address – Is It a Discrepancy? If a letter of credit requires the notify party’s email address to appear in the bill of lading, what happens if the email address is shown without the “@” symbol or “(AT)”? Should this be treated as a discrepancy, or can it be regarded as a simple typographical error? Let’s look at the following Q&A. Question Dear Mr. Old Man, … Read More
Is an Additional Place of Delivery on a Bill of Lading a Discrepancy? A bill of lading sometimes contains transport details beyond those required by the letter of credit, such as a Place of Delivery in a different country from the Port of Discharge. Does this additional information create a discrepancy when the LC is silent on it? This Q&A explains the UCP 600 position and why such an entry is generally acceptable, … Read More
Is an Additional Place of Delivery on a Bill of Lading a Discrepancy? A bill of lading sometimes contains transport details beyond those required by the letter of credit, such as a Place of Delivery in a different country from the Port of Discharge. Does this additional information create a discrepancy when the LC is silent on it? This Q&A explains the UCP 600 position and why such an entry is generally acceptable, … Read More
Insurance Endorsement: Who Should Endorse When the Policy Is Issued “A/C” the Beneficiary? It is not uncommon for an insurance policy or certificate to be purchased by a freight forwarder or another intermediary for the account of the beneficiary. Does this affect who must endorse the insurance document when the L/C requires an endorsement by the assured? Let’s look at the following question. Question Dear Mr. Old Man, Greetings for the day. I … Read More
Domestic L/C: Can the Issuing Bank Refuse a VAT Invoice Issued After the Shipment Date? Under a domestic letter of credit subject to UCP 600, can an issuing bank refuse a presentation simply because the VAT invoice was issued after the shipment date, even though this appears to be inconsistent with Vietnamese tax regulations? This question highlights the distinction between documentary examination under UCP 600 and compliance with domestic law. Question Dear Mr. Old Man, … Read More
Bill of Lading Blank Endorsed by the Shipper but Subsequently Endorsed by the Presenting Bank: Is It LC Compliant? Letters of credit frequently require a bill of lading (B/L) consigned “To order” and blank endorsed. But what happens if, after the shipper has blank endorsed the B/L, the presenting bank subsequently endorses it “To order of DEF Bank”? Is such an endorsement legally valid? More importantly, does the document still comply with the LC requirement? The following question explores … Read More
Negotiation Credit with Expiry in the Issuing Bank’s Country: Where Should Documents Be Presented? A negotiation credit is normally expected to expire in the beneficiary’s country, where the nominated bank is located. But what happens when an L/C is available by negotiation with any bank in the beneficiary’s country while the place of expiry is stated in the issuing bank’s country? This question highlights an unusual drafting issue that could expose the beneficiary to … Read More
Slot Carrier vs. Actual Carrier on a Bill of Lading – Is It a Discrepancy Under UCP 600? Introduction With the increasing use of slot charter arrangements in container shipping, bills of lading often contain references to both a slot carrier and an actual (operating) carrier, together with different bill of lading numbers. This can create uncertainty for document examiners. In this Q&A, Mr. Old Man explains what a slot carrier is and whether a difference between the … Read More
How to Send a Question to Mr. Old Man Every day, Mr. Old Man receives questions on International Trade Finance and Documentary Credits from readers around the world. For more than 20 years, these questions have been one of the main reasons why www.mroldman.net has continued to grow into a valuable source of practical knowledge for trade finance professionals. Mr. Old Man sincerely appreciates every question he receives. In … Read More