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Blank sailings effecting truckers in California

On Behalf of | May 1, 2020 | Business Law And Litigation |

In California and surrounding ports on the west coast, there have been delays for truckers due to unscheduled and intermittent gate closures, blank sailings, and equipment return issues. While overall the ports are doing well with overall truck turn times of less than an hour, there have been varied turn times across all the terminals ranging from 31-80 minutes at the Long Beach Container Terminal (LBCT). Between the global pandemic and the political trade climate between the United States and China, the overall volume has seen a 15 percent decrease.

Unannounced blank sailings, where a ship will pass a port, effects shipments that were expected to be outbound on the ship. Furthermore, the trans-Pacific supply chain has generally become interrupted, causing an issue with the equipment. Specifically, the return of empty containers and repositioning of chassis for truckers resulting in a lack of consistency. Some terminals have chassis storage which has the potential to cause additional delays.

LBCT, a fully automated terminal tends to be more friendly for truckers. Its full automation due to size and layout does not require chassis storage, and therefore there are fewer delays regarding chassis. Reliable schedules for vessels for all the routes is desirable and is the impetus for keeping a terminal running smoothly. Increases in blank sailings, especially when unscheduled, causes canceled work shifts to reduce costs at the terminal further delaying the supply chain.

If an individual or company experiences losses due to rerouting, blank sailings, or terminal inconsistencies, the affected parties may be able to seek retribution for lost expenses or breach of contract. Locating an experienced attorney in business law & litigation may be able to provide the legal support necessary for maximizing retribution of losses.

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