Chittorgarh · Nimbahera · Rajasthan · cement in transit
Cement in Transit: Rain Is Not One of the Seven Perils
Bagged cement is lost to water far more often than to accidents. A torn tarpaulin and an afternoon shower turn a truckload into stone, and the policy most despatchers hold names seven perils, none of which is rain. What pays for a wet load, a torn bag or a missing one is decided by the clause set chosen before the first truck leaves the plant.
Key takeaways
- Inland Transit Clauses (B) covers seven named perils: fire or explosion, lightning, breakage of bridges, earthquake, collision, overturning and derailment. Rain wetting is not one of them, so a load that sets in the bag is not covered under ITC-B.
- Torn and burst bags are handling losses, and short delivery is theft or non-delivery. Neither is an ITC-B peril. ITC-A, the all-risks version, is what responds to them.
- Cement moves continuously and in volume, so an open or annual declaration policy is the practical form: every despatch is covered without a proposal for each truck.
- Cement that hardens because it was stored too long or in damp conditions before despatch is not a transit loss. Inherent vice and delay are excluded under every clause set.
- The notice to the transporter runs 180 days from the booking date under section 16 of the Carriage by Road Act, 2007.
What actually goes wrong, and whether it is covered
Read this against your own policy schedule. The clause set named there decides which rows below you are insured for.
| Exposure | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Rain and water ingress | The characteristic cement loss. A torn or badly tied tarpaulin lets water in and the cement sets in the bag. Not an ITC-B peril; covered under ITC-A subject to the exclusions. |
| Torn and burst bags | Bags split in loading, in transit and at unloading, and the spillage cannot be recovered for sale. A handling loss, outside ITC-B. |
| Short delivery and pilferage | A few bags missing from a load is common and quietly uninsured on a named-peril cover. Counting at loading and at delivery is what makes it claimable at all. |
| Overturning and collision | Covered under ITC-B. When it happens the loss is usually most of the load, and the wet and torn bags that follow are part of the same claim. |
| Bulk cement in tankers | Losses are measured by weight rather than by bag, so the weighbridge slips at both ends are the evidence. Contamination of the bulker is a separate risk worth naming in the cover. |
If it happens: the first four things
In order. The first two are the ones people get wrong, and they are the ones that cannot be fixed afterwards.
- Photograph the load and the tarpaulin at loading. Whether the cover was intact is the first question on any wetting claim.
- Count the bags, or weigh the bulker, at delivery, and have the shortage and the wet or torn bags endorsed on the lorry receipt before signing for the load.
- Keep the wetted bags separate and do not dispose of them before the surveyor has seen them; set cement is the evidence of the loss.
- Send the transporter written notice of the loss well inside 180 days of booking. A claim bill is not a notice.
Written notice to the transporter must go within 180 days of the booking date under section 16 of the Carriage by Road Act, 2007. Not from the date of loss, and a claim bill does not count as notice. The wording is ready to copy at our claim letters page.
The words the trade actually uses
Useful when the loss is being described by a driver, a munshi or a godown supervisor rather than by you.
| Hindi | What it means for the policy |
|---|---|
| सीमेंट की बोरी | cement bag |
| तिरपाल | tarpaulin, whose condition decides a wetting claim |
| भीगना | wetting, which ITC-B does not cover |
| कम माल | short delivery, a theft or non-delivery loss |
| बिल्टी | the lorry receipt, LR or GR |
Export and the sea leg
Most Rajasthan cement is consumed in India. Where a consignment is exported, it is an Institute Cargo Clauses risk once it is on the water, and under FOB or CFR the road leg to the port remains the seller's risk and needs the seller's own transit cover.
The clause sets themselves are set out in full on our marine cargo clauses page, including the seven named perils under ITC-B taken from an insurer's filed wording.
Frequently asked questions
Does transit insurance cover cement damaged by rain?
Not under Inland Transit Clauses (B), whose seven named perils do not include rain. ITC-A, the all-risks version, responds to wetting in transit, subject to its exclusions such as insufficient packing and inherent vice.
What is the right insurance for cement despatches?
For continuous despatches, an open or annual declaration policy on ITC-A, so every truck is covered automatically and wetting, torn bags and shortage are within the cover. The sum insured per truck should match the largest single load.
Is short delivery of cement bags covered?
Under ITC-A, yes, subject to the policy terms. Under ITC-B, no: theft and non-delivery are not among its perils. Either way the shortage must be counted and endorsed on the lorry receipt at delivery.
Why was my cement transit claim rejected?
Usually because the policy was ITC-B and the loss was wetting or shortage, or because the cement had set before despatch, which is excluded as inherent vice, or because the damage was not endorsed at delivery.
How long do I have to claim against the transporter?
Written notice within 180 days of the booking date under section 16 of the Carriage by Road Act, 2007. It runs from booking, not from the day you found the damage.
Related: Marine cargo clauses explained · Marine cargo calculator · Cement and concrete industry · Inland transit insurance · The letters to send after a loss.