The clause that runs cargo cover from the moment the goods leave the warehouse of origin until delivery at the final warehouse, transshipments included.
The warehouse to warehouse clause defines not what is covered but when cover exists, a question as decisive as the first, since goods spend most of their journey somewhere other than aboard a ship. Cover attaches when the goods are first moved within the warehouse of origin for the purpose of loading, continues through the main carriage, transshipments and ordinary stoppages, and ends on delivery at the named warehouse at destination. It carries limits that protect the underwriter from open-ended exposure, notably a sixty day period after discharge of the vessel at the destination port, beyond which cover ceases even if the goods have not arrived. A companion wording, the termination of transit clause, ends cover when the assured allocates the goods to storage or to distribution, that is, when they stop being in transit. The problem solved is the gap in cover at the interfaces, quay, terminal and bonded warehouse, where a notable share of damage and theft is concentrated.
The revision of the Institute Cargo Clauses effective January 1, 2009 moved the end of transit: cover now runs until the goods are unloaded from the carrying vehicle at the final warehouse, rather than to mere arrival at the premises, a change that closed a recurring argument about damage occurring during unstuffing.
clause de durée du transit, transit clause