Policies · Liability and Insurance
Liability and Insurance Policy
Our liability for lost or damaged goods is legally capped — for sea ~£2/kg, road ~£8.85/kg, air ~£27.60/kg. For most cargo that's nowhere near full value. We strongly recommend cargo insurance — we can arrange ICC-A 'all risks' cover through our cargo insurance partners.
Two-layer liability stack
Layer 1 — Taurex under its standard trading terms: 2 SDR/kg + 75,000 SDR per transaction cap. Layer 2 — Carrier under international convention. When goods lost or damaged we recover from carrier and uncovered loss falls within our standard T&C limits. 1 SDR ≈ £1.06 — check IMF SDR rate for current.
Convention limits (current 2026)
Sea Hague-Visby: 2 SDR/kg OR 666.67 SDR/package (higher applies). Notification: at discharge / 3 days hidden. Time bar: 1 year. Road CMR: 8.33 SDR/kg. Notification: at delivery / 7 days / 21 days hidden. Time bar: 1 year (3 if wilful). Air Montreal 1999: 26 SDR/kg (raised 28 Dec 2024). Notification: 14 days damage / 21 days delay. Time bar: 2 years. Rail CIM: 17 SDR/kg, 1 year. UK domestic road RHA: ~£1.30/kg, 9 months.
Worked example
20kg electronics worth £20,000 by air, damaged. Montreal convention: 20×26 SDR = 520 SDR ≈ £551. Our T&C cap: 20×2 SDR ≈ £42. Customer recovers ~£551 from airline; £19,449 of loss uninsured. With ICC-A cargo insurance at 0.5% (£100 premium), customer recovers £20,000. Without insurance, only £551 is recoverable under international convention.
Cargo insurance — strongly recommended
Available via our FCA-regulated broker partner. ICC-A 'All Risks' (recommended standard): comprehensive, war/strikes available as add-ons, typically 0.3–0.7% of declared value. ICC-B: named perils only, 0.2–0.4%. ICC-C: catastrophe only, 0.15–0.3%. Add by writing 'INSURE: YES, VALUE GBP [X]' on your booking. Taurex is not an FCA broker; we facilitate the introduction.
Special cases
Goods >£10,000: ICC-A strongly recommended. Goods >£100,000: under-deck or container-only may be required. Dangerous goods: cover varies — some classes excluded. Personal effects: standard policies cover fair market value (specialist policy may give better protection). Excluded from standard: live animals, cash, jewellery >£1k, plants, perishables without temperature cover, antiques without provenance, unaccompanied valuables.
What we are NOT liable for
Loss from your inaccurate information, packaging, or labelling. Inherent vice of the goods (rot, rust, sweat, leakage, wear). Force majeure. Customs seizure. Loss where you were notified of high risk and declined insurance. Consequential, indirect, special, economic, or business loss. Loss from third party we did not appoint. Loss notified outside the time bars.
Our PI and PL insurance
We hold Public Liability, Professional Indemnity (errors and omissions), Cyber Liability, and Goods in Trust/GIT insurance. Certificate of cover available on request to [email protected].
Last reviewed 2026-06-06.