Freight forwarder sues New Jersey-based exporter

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Sealink International Inc., Plano, Texas, has served Ted Kaiser of Dock 7 Materials Group LLC, Red Bank, New Jersey, for having abandoned cargo in Shanghai for more than 18 months.

Sealink alleges that Nov. 9, 2015, Dock 7 shipped three 40-foot containers of plastic scrap from the Port of Los Angeles to Yangshan Port in Shanghai. However, Dock 7 and/or the company’s consignee, Shanghai Tiancheng Resources & Environmental Protection Co. Ltd., did not clear the shipment, which arrived in Shanghai Dec. 2, 2015, Sealink says.

The consignee had 21 days to take delivery of the containers without incurring demurrage and detention charges. The containers sat at the port from Dec. 23, 2015, to March 13, 2017, according to Seaklink, incurring demurrage and detention fees in the sum of$ 129,865.

The freight forwarder says it has been notifying Dock 7 for past 18 months of the status of the shipment and that the company promised to clear it.

Because of the failure to clear the shipment, the cargo came back to the point of origin. Sealink says it paid the detention and demurrage charges as well as the return carriage, totaling $141,490, and has been unable to get repayment from Dock 7 despite invoicing the company.

The plaintiff says it tried to work with Dock 7, but the company stopped taking calls and responding to emails from the freight forwarder.

In an email dated July 21, 2017, Kaiser writes, “Dock 7 Materials Group LLC denies the claim, and the matter will be settled in court.”

Sealink filed its lawsuit against Dock 7 in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey July 6, 2017.