Switch Bills Of Lading: Risks And Instruments Of Fraud

In international trade goods are often bought and sold by traders and they often do not produce the goods. The trader earns on the price differential between his supplier and buyer. Often the trader will want to protect the identity of the supplier/shipper and may ask the carrier to switch bills of lading to another bill of lading which does not name the actual supplier. The original of bill of lading must be returned before a switch bill of lading will be issued. The carrier and/or freight forwarder must make sure that the original set of bills of lading are taken out of circulation and cancelled before the switch bill of lading can be released. This is important as it ensures that there is only one set of documents in force to prevent problems.