Damage survey: ship and cargo
A damage survey establishes what was damaged, how badly, and, as far as the evidence allows, why. In ports it is either damage to the ship, for example from stevedores or a berth, or damage to the cargo: wet, rusted, crushed, contaminated or short.
Ship damage
Typical cases in port are stevedore damage to hatch coamings, ladders, frames and tank tops from grabs, magnets and bulldozers; contact with the berth during berthing; and heavy weather damage discovered on arrival. The surveyor usually acts for the owners, their P&I club or hull insurers, sometimes jointly with the charterer's or terminal's surveyor. Class surveys for seaworthiness are separate and are done by the classification society.
For stevedore damage, the master normally issues a stevedore damage report during cargo work and has it signed. A surveyor who sees the damage while the stevedores are still on board can tie it to the operation; a week later, with the holds full of the next cargo, that is much harder.
Cargo damage
For steel products the usual issues are rust, wet damage, bent or crushed coils and bundles, and broken lashing. For bulk cargoes they are wetting, contamination with the previous cargo or foreign material, heating and shortage. The surveyor acts for receivers or cargo insurers, often alongside the owners' surveyor. Samples, photographs and the cargo's position in the hold are recorded before the cargo is moved or mixed.
Why timing and joint attendance matter
- Inspect before discharge continues or the cargo leaves the port; once mixed in a stockpile, damaged and sound cargo cannot be separated.
- Issue letters of protest promptly and note them in the statement of facts.
- Where possible, owners' and cargo interests' surveyors attend together and agree the facts, even if they disagree on the cause.
Finding a surveyor
Choose the port on Portiva to see every authorized company there. To get quotes, send one request and we pass it to companies working in that port. Survey companies abroad looking for a local surveyor to attend on their behalf can use the attending surveyor request.