How to find a reliable local freight forwarder?


Today I would like to show you how to to find a reliable local freight forwarder in your country.

International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) is a non-governmental organisation that represents freight forwarders in a global scale. They have 40.000 individual freight forwarder members. They have also one or more association members in each country, which makes their website invaluable when looking for a reliable freight forwarder.

I will be demonstrating my example as if I am looking for a local freight forwarder in the United Kingdom. please keep in mind that you can find a local freight forwarder more than 100 countries with my method.


Option 1 : Finding a Local Freight Forwarder through FIATA Website's Member Directory 


Step 1: Open Fiata Website  ( http://www.fiata.com )

Step 1 : Open Fiata website



Step 2: Click Members Directory Which is Located Under the Members Menu


Step 2: Click Members Directory Which is Located Under the Members Menu



Step 3: Choose Your Country from the Drop-down List and Press Submit Button


Step 3: Choose Your Country from the Drop-down List and Press Submit Button



Step 4: Congratulations! You Have Reached All Fiata Member Freight Forwarders in Your Country


You Have Reached All Fiata Member Freight Forwarders in Your Country



Option 2 : Finding a Local Freight Forwarder through Local Fiata Association Member's Website 



Step 1: Open Fiata Website




Step 1 : Open Fiata website

Step 2: Click Association-Members Page



Step 2 : Click Association-Members Page

Step 3: Choose Your Country From The List and Press Submit Button



Step 3: Choose Your Country From The List and Press Submit Button


Step 4: Click Fiata Associate Member's Website Located in Your Country


Step 4: Click Fiata Associate Member's Website Located in Your Country


Step 5: Locate Members Area in Your Country's Associate Member's Website 


Step 5: Locate Members Area in Your Country's Associate Member's Website


Step 6: Find a Local Forwarder by Using the Search Option in Your Country's Associate Member's Website 

Step 6: Find a Local Forwarder by Using the Search Option in Your Country's Associate Member's Website 





What are advantages of using a freight forwarder instead of working with the carrier direct?

advantages of using a freight forwarder
A freight forwarder acts as an agent of the shipper in case shipment will be arranged in “freight prepaid” terms or as an agent of the buyer in case shipment will be arranged in “freight collect” terms, who makes the deals with the carrier(s) by signing the contracts of carriages with them for the whole transportation of cargo from seller’s location to the buyer’s premises under the optimum conditions.

Above description explains us that freight forwarders are not only agents of the shippers and buyers but also the carriers as well. As a result they should be offering value added services to all the parties they serve.

Benefits of freight forwarders can be examined in two main groups:

Freight Forwarders’ Benefits to Shippers and Consignees:

  • Freight forwarders arrange door-to-door shipments covering multimodal transportation. No single carrier could offer complex multimodal transportation services.
  • Freight forwarders can find better freight quotes than shippers or consignees. They know the carriers who are stronger at certain routes and who are weak. Their market knowledge is surely greater than the shippers without match.
  • Freight forwarders can learn the latest changes in the export and import rules and regulations more quickly. Because they are making shipments more frequently than a single shipper, they can get critical information in regards to the current changes in regulations sooner.
  • Freight forwarders can consolidate “Less Container Loads” in to “Full Container Loads”. 
  • Freight forwarders can offer storage, handling, packing or distribution services to their clients.
  • Freight forwarders can offer custom breakage services to their clients

Freight Forwarders’ Benefits to Carriers:


  • Freight forwarders’ main advantage to the carriers would be decreased workload. Carriers are always busy. They are working with overcapacity. If you had to load a container with a carrier direct, you should have acknowledged this reality in a hard way. You most probably couldn’t reach the contact person in carrier’s office by phone. If you do not know who you should be speaking with things are getting worse. One person dials you to another; in which situation you may have to spend 10-15 minutes until you could figure out who the right person is for that situation that you should talk with. 
  • Freight forwarders are service providers. They have to be much more customer friendly than the carriers, otherwise they can’t be successful on the market. Freight forwarders that dealing with the shippers on a daily basis in a particular shipment are often manage to solve much of the problems otherwise shippers would have to reflect to the carriers. As a result freight forwarders reduce the workloads of the carriers.
  • Secondly, freight forwarders work as sales agents of the carriers.
  • Thirdly, some big freight forwarders buy bulk spaces from the carriers in yearly periods, then they will sell them to their customers thorough out the year. This will give some stability on the sales side to the carriers.

What are the functions of freight forwarders in international transportation?

It would be much more better explaining how international transportation functions in today’s complex global economy, before jumping into the definition of freight forwarders.

In international trade goods are being transported from exporting companies to importing companies with different modes of transport such as sea, land, air and rail transportation. 

If an international carriage can be completed with the utilization of only one mode of transport, this kind of carriage is called single mode transportation. 

If an international carriage can be completed with the utilization of more than one mode of transport, this kind of carriage is called multimodal transportation.

Single Mode of Transport vs Multimodal Transport
Now we are approaching to the point where the benefits of freight forwarders more apparent. 

Single mode of transportation can be completed by the carriers who own and operate the transportation means such as sea carriers who own the vessels and operate them under their commercial names. 

Similarly land carriers own and operate truck fleets. 

Single mode sea transportation can be completed by a sea carrier. Single mode land transportation can be completed by a land carrier. However, multimodal transportation is not easy to be completed by a single carrier’s abilities.

As an example let us assume that an exporter located in Wuhan, China has to transfer the goods to Zurich, Switzerland. First of all exporter need to carry the goods to Shanghai Port with a local transportation, later on the goods must be carried to Genoa Port, Italy with a container vessel and finally goods will be carried to importer’s warehouse in Zurich, Switzerland with land transportation.

On this example multimodal shipment must be effected and neither sea carrier nor the local land carriers could handle such an organization. 

The main function of the freight forwarders arise at this point. They enter the carriage transaction on behalf of the exporters or importers and sign a carriage of contract for each leg of the journey with corresponding carriers. They will offer their clients a turnkey solution which is known as door-to-door shipments.

Freight forwarders generally issue a “Freight Forwarder Bill of Lading” or “Fiata Multimodal Bill of Lading”.

Main roles and functions of freight forwarders in international transportation:
  • Freight forwarders can make shipments, which are covering more than one modes of transport under a single bill of lading. 
  • Freight forwarders can offer door-to-door shipments under their responsibilities. 
  • Freight forwarders can decrease transportation costs by offering more competitive freight quotes. 
  • Freight forwarders can increase the efficiency of carriers, exporter and importers by giving professional services during the transportation. 
  • Freight forwarders can load “Less Container Loads” of goods by consolidating them into “Full Container Loads”. 
  • Freight forwarders can offer storage, handling, packing or distribution services to their clients. 
  • Freight forwarders can offer custom breakage services to their clients.

DHL UK explains important points of documentation of air cargo shipments

I have written an article one month ago explaining "How to send samples via international courier without having custom clearance problems?". You can read my article to learn key points of Custom Free International Courier Shipments.

Today I would like to share a video with you which is prepared by the DHL UK team. They explain core elements of custom formalities in International Courier Shipments.



What is a straight bill of lading? What are the differences between straight bills of lading and bills of lading?

Bill of lading is a traditional transport document. 

It has been in use since the old days when vessels were really slow comparing to modern container carriers.

Even in 19th centuary, especially shipments from South America to Europe or Africa to Europe took quite significant time. 

Long transportation periods create financial problems for both exporters and importers as finance has always been a key issue for international trade.

International traders and banks managed to find a brilliant solution for this problem. 

They started to implement a payment method which is called letter of credit.

Under a letter of credit payment method, an issuing bank notifies its conditional payment undertaking to the seller in a written format which means that issuing bank sends a letter to the exporter which contains the conditions and requirements of the payment.

Seller could get its money only if he can present required documents in an acceptable way to the issuing bank.