Cargo care concerns at Port

Managing Director of the Barbados Port Inc David Jean-Marie is assuring Barbadians that security protocols, which govern shipments passing through the Bridgetown Port, are not in anyway compromised, even as some persons have complained of damages to their cargo due to the recent congestion at the port.

Last week one shipper and two custom brokers told Barbados TODAY that they were seeing a troubling increase in the number of clients who have had items damaged while in the care of the port. The consensus among the complainants was that while it is not uncommon for a few incidents to occur, they believe that the occurrences have increased during the recent delays caused by the transition from ASYCUDO ++ to ASYCUDO World system, which began last month.

“I had a customer who even had a big hole in the barrel caused by the forklift ramming through it. I had another client where so many of the things are damaged that she could not salvage anything from the barrel. In her case, some of the laundry detergents were burst and messed up the entire barrel of items. We had a couple cases where persons shipped electronics and by the time they got the things cleared from the port, they were not working,” one shipping agent told Barbados TODAY.

A customer is complaining that her items were ruined, alleging that a forklift at the port punched a hole in the barrel and ruptured several containers of laundry detergent, spilling the contents all over the items in the barrel.

The customs brokers described a state of congestion at the port, saying that even the aisles of the storage shed are now crammed with barrels and packages. They believe that this congestion has accounted for the increase in damages to shipments.

“The packages are not clearing as fast and because of that there are barrels and boxes all in the walkway of the sheds and as a result the forklifts really can’t get through the spaces. So, it’s really no surprise that we are seeing these damages. The ASYCUDO World is a good system and I believe once we get all of the backlog dealt with then we would be alright,” one broker, who did not want to be identified, explained.

However, when asked about the concerns which have been reported to Barbados TODAY, Jean-Marie insisted that packages at the Bridgetown Port were being handled with the strictest safety standards. Jean-Marie maintained that there has been no increase in the number of complaints about cargo being damaged at the port. He also pointed out that it was difficult to determine at which trans-shipment point, packages would have sustained damages.

“I am not aware of these incidents in question. First let me say that we train our
staff to conduct themselves in the most professional manner at all time. We certainly are not aware of any increase in damages occurring in the port at this point in time to any cargo. Persons need to recognize that shipping is a process and damages may have occurred at the port, but it also could have occurred during shipping or at other ports overseas,” he explained.

He also advised that the port has procedures for dealing with such complaints and promised that each case would be dealt with thoroughly and fairly.

“Where it can be proven that damages occurred at the port of entry, we have established procedures for this and we do try to investigate each and every claim. The Claims Committee would make a determination as to where liabilities may have occurred and restitution would be made if it determined that we are at fault,” he pointed out.
colvillemounsey@barbadostoday.bb