In international air transport, the carrier must ensure the safe and normal transportation of the goods. The carrier shall bear the liability for compensation for the loss caused by the destruction, loss or damage of the goods during the carrier’s custody, or the loss caused by delay. The maximum limit of compensation is US$20 per kilogram or US$9.07 per pound (or other currencies of equivalent value). If the value of the goods exceeds this prescribed limit, the owner of the goods can pay the carrier a declared value surcharge so that the carrier will no longer enjoy the limitation of liability.
The shipper can declare the value of the consigned goods to the carrier on the waybill, that is, the consignment declared price. The consignment declared price can be a specific amount or an undeclared value NVD (No Value Declared). The consignment declared value can be used to calculate the declared value surcharge.
Declared value surcharge = declared value of goods – (actual gross weight x maximum compensation per kilogram) x 0.5%
Pay attention to the double rounding, especially when the consignment declared value is expressed in local goods, the US dollar should be converted into local goods first, that is, 20 x exchange rate, then multiplied by weight and rounded.
When handling the declared value, pay attention to the following matters: the carrier’s compensation liability is calculated based on the gross weight of the goods, which has nothing to do with the volume weight and billing weight; when calculating the declared value surcharge, the gross weight of the goods does not include various container equipment; when declaring the value of the goods, the declared value of the entire bill of goods should be filled in, and it cannot be filled in separately; the consignment declared value should be filled in by the consignor or its agent, and it cannot be modified after the plane takes off; the carrier’s compensation liability and declared value calculation are related to the point of transportation; the amount of declared value cannot replace insurance.