{"id":3899,"date":"2026-07-06T19:13:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:13:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/insurance-market-braces-for-iata-dawb-liability-changes-fallout\/"},"modified":"2026-07-06T19:13:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T16:13:17","slug":"insurance-market-braces-for-iata-dawb-liability-changes-fallout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/insurance-market-braces-for-iata-dawb-liability-changes-fallout\/","title":{"rendered":"Insurance market braces for IATA DAWB liability changes fallout"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"AIrcraft\n

Photo:
\n\u00a9 Shutterbas
\n| Dreamstime.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The insurance implications of IATA\u2019s controversial Direct Air Waybill (DAWB) changes are\u00a0emerging\u00a0as one of the biggest concerns for freight forwarders, with industry experts warning that existing liability policies may no longer match the risks firms face.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The revised framework, which took effect on 1 July, has prompted criticism from FIATA and\u00a0forwarding\u00a0associations<\/a> over concerns it could make freight forwarders responsible for liabilities traditionally borne by shippers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While the legal implications are still being debated, insurers are already assessing what the changes could mean for underwriting.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Matthew Phillips, co-founder and chief operating officer of cargo insurance platform Breeze, told\u00a0The Loadstar<\/i>\u00a0that traditional forwarder liability insurance was never designed to cover the expanded exposure the new framework could create.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTraditional forwarder liability insurance is based and mainly priced around what forwarders actually control \u2013 their own errors, omissions and negligence in arranging the movement,\u201d he explained.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf this revised framework effectively makes forwarders the contractual shipper of record, there is a real mismatch between the risk forwarders are now exposed to and the risk their existing policies were built to cover.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Phillips said insurers could respond by increasing premiums and tightening underwriting requirements.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis would especially apply to forwarders who are not on top of managing this new exposure,\u201d he urged.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cInsurers could introduce specific exclusions around shipper originated risks, for example misdeclarations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The concerns echo those raised by Brandon Fried, executive director of the\u00a0Airforwarders\u00a0Association (AfA), who previously told\u00a0The Loadstar<\/i>\u00a0that forwarder liability insurance was written around what forwarders actually do, not around shipper obligations, raising the prospect of coverage gaps if they are treated as contractual shippers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Phillips said the industry should not wait for insurers or airlines to\u00a0determine\u00a0how the new rules would\u00a0operate\u00a0before\u00a0taking action.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe smartest move for forwarders isn\u2019t to wait for this to play out, it is to push for the underlying cargo risk to be comprehensively covered by the shipper, through a proper all risks cargo insurance policy on the shipment itself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He advised that ensuring shippers had adequate cargo insurance represented an immediate way of mitigating risk without waiting for annual liability policies to be renegotiated.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Phillips\u00a0warned:\u00a0\u201cWithout a doubt, this is a significant and perhaps abrupt reallocation of risk. Liability is supposed to track control, and this ruling opens this up for debate and has naturally caused an uproar.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cA potential new framework that can make the booking agent essentially liable for a shipper\u2019s misdeclaration or a carrier\u2019s mishandling is going to cause confusion, even more so when there is no consistent implementation across airlines, which means forwarders are going to have to negotiate terms carrier by carrier with total uncertainty about what they are signing up for.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

He added that introducing the changes without allowing time to assess their legal and\u00a0insurance consequences would\u00a0put the cost of the transition\u00a0\u201cdisproportionately\u201d on\u00a0smaller\u00a0to mid-size forwarders, who may not have the balance sheet to fund the gap.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMake sure you check your own liability cover in detail, check the terms with the airline and always, without fail, check whether your shipper is carrying their own cargo insurance and if not, offer them a simple per shipment solution,\u201d he advised forwarders.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

IATA has said the amendments are intended to strengthen the contractual framework around direct air waybills, while FIATA continues to press for a formal review of the changes and greater clarity over how they will be implemented.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Glyn Hughes, director general of\u00a0Tiaca, told\u00a0The Loadstar<\/i>: \u201cThe IATA air Cargo Agency program was\u00a0established\u00a0over 5 decades ago when relationships were vastly different from today.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cCargo Agents were agents of the carrier when executing an AWB and also acted as agents of the shipper when completing the AWB, however when consolidations were introduced roles started to evolve and the freight forwarder no longer acted as an agent but rather as a contracting principal with the carrier,\u201d he explained.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, whilst the current Agency Program, together with associated program CASS, has been adapted over the years the roles have become blurred and\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0difficult to administer and difficult to\u00a0operate\u00a0under ambiguity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Hughes noted that while IATA and FIATA have\u00a0tried to create a program\u00a0to\u00a0help bring clarity to roles,\u00a0rights\u00a0and obligations, \u201csuccess has not been achieved\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But he added: \u201cThis latest dispute just further illustrates the need for disconnecting the past with the promise of what tomorrow can bring.\u00a0IATA and FIATA are both incredibly important bodies that\u00a0represent\u00a0two of the most important stakeholders in the air cargo supply chain.\u00a0 Ideally, they would work in tandem to help increase air cargo\u2019s global share of trade from the current level of around 1% by volume.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

This article is \u00a9 The Loadstar. Reproduction, rewriting, or derivative use requires a license. Contact [email\u00a0protected]<\/a> for licensing enquiries.<\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Photo: \u00a9 Shutterbas | Dreamstime.com 06\/07\/2026 The insurance implications of IATA\u2019s controversial Direct Air Waybill (DAWB) changes are\u00a0emerging\u00a0as one of the biggest concerns for freight forwarders, with industry experts warning that existing liability policies may no longer match the risks firms face.\u00a0 The revised framework, which took effect on 1 July, has prompted criticism from 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\u00a9 Shutterbas | Dreamstime.com 06\/07\/2026 The insurance implications of IATA\u2019s controversial Direct Air Waybill (DAWB) changes are\u00a0emerging\u00a0as one of the biggest concerns for freight forwarders, with industry experts warning that existing liability policies may no longer match the risks firms face.\u00a0 The revised framework, which took effect on 1 July, has prompted criticism from…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phf4fX-10T","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/280549882"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3899"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3899\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}