Rakshit Financial ServicesInsurance broker · Udaipur

← Rakshit Financial Services

Quarry to port · blocks and slabs

Granite in Transit: Blocks, Slabs and the Weight Problem

Granite fails differently from marble. It is harder and less prone to chipping, and much heavier, so the losses come from the load itself: shifting blocks, overturned trailers, damaged beds and cranes. The cover has to follow the weight, and the export leg has to be joined to the inland one without a gap.

Written by Parul Bhargava · Founder and Principal Advisor, advising since 2004

Key takeaways

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.

ExposureWhat it means in practice
Load shift and overturningThe dominant granite loss. A block that moves on the bed takes the trailer with it. Covered under ITC-B, and the reason overturning is worth reading carefully in your wording.
Crane and handling damage at loadingBlocks are lifted, not carried. Damage during lifting may fall outside the transit policy depending on when cover attaches.
Bed and axle failure under weightMechanical failure of the carrying vehicle is not itself an insured peril. The consequences of an accident are; the breakdown is not.
Edge and corner damage on slabsWhere granite is moved as processed slabs, it behaves like marble and the same handling-breakage gap applies.
Port and stevedoring damageOn the export leg, damage in handling at the port is a different clause set and often a different insurer's problem.

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.

  1. Photograph the lashing and chocking before departure. On a shifted-load claim the insurer's first question is how the block was secured.
  2. Record the weight and the vehicle's rated capacity. An overloaded vehicle invites an argument about roadworthiness that can defeat an otherwise good claim.
  3. At delivery, get the damage endorsed on the challan before the block is offloaded, not after.
  4. Leave the load as it lies where it is safe. A block moved before survey is a block whose damage cannot be attributed.

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.

HindiWhat it means for the policy
ब्लॉकquarry block
लदान / लोडिंगloading, where much of the damage happens
रस्सी-बंधनlashing, the thing the surveyor asks about
पलटीoverturning, covered under ITC-B
बिल्टीconsignment note

Export and the sea leg

Granite is an export commodity and the two legs are governed separately. Inside India it is Inland Transit Clauses; on the water it is Institute Cargo Clauses. Under CIF the seller must insure but only to ICC (C), the narrowest set, which is a named-perils cover that leaves theft and most wetting outside. Buyers routinely assume they hold all-risks cover and discover otherwise after a loss.

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

What insurance covers granite blocks in transit?

Inland Transit Clauses for the movement inside India, and Institute Cargo Clauses for the sea leg if the blocks are exported. For high-value block consignments ITC-A avoids the arguments that a named-peril cover invites, and the premium difference on a single overturned trailer is not worth the saving.

Is overturning covered under transit insurance?

Yes. Overturning of the carrying vehicle or wagon is one of the seven named perils under Inland Transit Clauses (B), so it is covered even on the narrower policy. It is the peril that actually pays on heavy stone.

Who is responsible if a granite block shifts and damages the truck?

That is a liability question rather than a cargo one. The transit policy covers your goods; damage to the vehicle and to third parties sits with the transporter's own cover. Where you arranged the loading, expect the question of whether it was properly secured to be raised against you.

Does the policy cover damage during crane loading?

Depends on the attachment wording. Cover that attaches when the goods leave the named premises may not respond to damage while the block is still being lifted. On block movements this is worth checking specifically rather than assuming.

What clause set applies to exported granite?

Institute Cargo Clauses on the marine leg, Inland Transit Clauses on the road leg to the port. Under CIF the seller is obliged to insure only to ICC (C), which is the narrowest set and excludes theft and most water damage. If the buyer expects all-risks cover, it has to be specified as ICC (A).

Source and method. Clause behaviour is described from Indian insurers' filed base product wordings for inland transit and from the standard Institute Cargo Clauses, not from secondary summaries. The carrier notice period is section 16 of the Carriage by Road Act, 2007. Your own policy governs: clause sets are amended by endorsement more often than people expect, so read the schedule and the wording together.
Send us your policy schedule on WhatsApp and we will tell you which clause you are on and whether it matches what you move, free, whether or not we placed the cover: +91 92514 56334.
Related: Marine cargo clauses explained · Marble quarry insurance, Rajsamand · Marine cargo quote · Marble transit insurance · The letters to send after a loss.