Freight Forwarder

Agent that arranges transportation of goods on behalf of the shipper, contracting separately with carriers for sea, air, road, and rail legs. Forwarders may issue their own house bills of lading covering the door-to-door movement, contract through NVOCC roles for sea legs, and consolidate cargo from multiple shippers into single FCL containers. Industry standards are published by FIATA (International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations) and by national associations such as the BIFA Standard Trading Conditions in the UK. Forwarder liability is typically capped under those terms.