The movement of cargo is a huge factor in many industries. Cargo movement includes cargo containers, freighters, ships, planes, trucks and, unfortunately, cargo accidents. Cargo accidents happen daily due to collisions, fires, bad weather, etc.
However, some cargo accidents just stand out due to how odd they are and the unique cargo transported. Weird cargo accidents make people realise that cargo could be anything, and one accident can result in serious and damaging situations.
The article will highlight the top 5 strange cargo accidents logistics companies have faced and shocked the public.
What Is Cargo Insurance?
Cargo insurance is the best policy to protect the value of cargo from damage, loss, or theft. The insurance will cover the cargo movement through most transports such as ships (marine), flights, trucks, or trains. Cargo accidents can happen at any point and may be out of the freighter, freight forwarding company and cargo owner’s control.
Depending on the specific policy, the insurance can begin from loading to unloading or door-to-door. The insurance will help provide the cost of repair, replacement, and general average cover.
Top Weird Cargo Accidents
Spilt Chocolate
Have you ever dreamt of a river of chocolate? Well, for a moment, this was almost reality in Arizona, when a cargo truck transporting melted chocolate tipped over. The truck was moving 3,500 gallons of melted chocolate and tipped over due to an accident. Unfortunately, the accident resulted in the delicious cargo spilling all over the road.
The sweet river of chocolate took 4 hours to clean and led to a large amount of financial loss to the cargo owners and logistics company. All that wasted chocolate could have been used to create some delicious products.
Frozen Cars
We have all heard of Cars often heating up, but have you ever heard of a frozen car? A Cargo Ship ‘Sun Rio’ arrived at a port in Vladivostok, Russia, with thousands of frozen Japanese cars. The cargo ship travelled from Japan to Russia and went through serious weather issues. The splashing water quickly froze over all cargo and caused some serious damage to the expensive cars.
Transporting a car from one country to another is always stressful, with many papers and constant cargo tracking. Finding your car frozen can add to all that stress, especially for a business. Such an incident can cost millions to recover from and even result in lawsuits against the freight forwarder.
Melting Ice-cream
If ice cream melts, is it a milkshake? Our client was a victim of a cargo accident that resulted in a USD 100,000 loss. The business was moving 95 large boxes of ice cream worth USD 97,000 from Switzerland to Dubai. The cargo loaders stored the boxes in the air cargo area of the flight, where they should have plugged in the freezer box.
Unfortunately, the cargo airline staff did not understand the cargo instructions and forgot to plug in the freezer box. Therefore the ice cream was all melted when it reached the destination.
The ice cream was now just a messy liquid and the worst outcome the freight forwarding company could have imagined. In these cases, the businesses suffer a significant loss and can sue the logistics company in charge.
Lost Rubber Ducks
Have you ever spotted a random rubber duck in the sea? If yes, you may have seen one of the rubber ducks from this incident. In 1992 cargo ship container began its journey loaded with 28,000 rubber ducks and other bath toys from China to the U.S.
Due to the bad weather and rough seas, the container ship lost cargo with the rubber ducks. Some ducks made it to shore, and most are still lost. Weirdly, these products may still be spotted due to their non-biodegradable material.
As weird and funny as this cargo accident is, the misfortune still resulted in financial loss and environmental damage.
Space Shuttle on Flight
Cargo can be anything from animals to art to even a space shuttle! The Boeing 747 is a great aircraft used by passenger and air cargo airlines. It has also been used for unlikely cargo, such as the NASA Space Shuttle in 2012. The space shuttle was attached to the aircraft’s top – like a piggyback.
Thankfully there were no cargo accidents in this case, but the liability is much more than any other accidents above. Many things could have gone wrong if one person had made a mistake, which would result in billions.
This case shows that anything can be transported from one place to another if the planning is done well. It also makes you question baggage weight limits when the planes can carry 75,000 kg of cargo.
Will Cargo Insurance Cover Most Cargo Accidents?
Cargo insurance is crucial to cover any possibility of cargo accidents or any misfortunate situation. Furthermore, famous logistics companies like Kerry logistics and CX cargo also need insurance to protect their business.
The insurance can be purchased by businesses, individuals and also freight forwarders.
Cargo insurance provides cover for damage, loss and even theft of cargo at any point of the journey. Weather, collisions and third-party obstructions can cause these incidents. The insurance will also provide general average costs if the freight forwarder has to declare a general average.
Therefore, cargo insurance coverage can help save the business a large amount of financial loss as these unfortunate accidents can add up to millions.
To Learn More about cargo insurance and get the best coverage for your cargo worldwide, contact Red Asia Insurance.
