H/C

Held covered at a premium to be arranged.

Hague Protocol

Amendment of the Warsaw convention at The Hague, September 28, 1955 (air cargo).
Warsaw Convention

Hague Rules

International convention for the unification of certain rules, relating to Bills of Lading (1924). These Rules include the description of responsibilities of ocean carriers.
Hague-Visby Rules

Hague-Visby Rules

Set of rules, published in 1968, amending the Hague Rules.

Half Height Container

Container, fitted with or without soft or hard cover, 4'3" in height (used for very dense cargo such as metals).

Hamburg Rules

United Nations Convention on the carriage of goods by sea of 1978 adopted in 1992.

Handling Instructions

Indication of how cargo is to be handled.

Hard Currency

Term used to describe a currency whose value is sound and steady and is generally acceptable at face value internationally.

Harmonized System

Abbreviation: HS. Numeric multipurpose system, developed by the Customs Cooperation Council, for the classification of goods. With its six digits it covers about 5000 descriptions of the products or groups of products most commonly produced and traded. It is designed for customs services, but can also be used for statistics, transport purposes, export, import and manufacturing.
Brussels Tariff Nomenclature Commodity

Hatch Cover

Watertight means of closing the hatchway of a vessel.
Hatchway

Hatchway

Opening in the deck of a vessel through which cargo is loaded into, or discharged from the hold and which is closed by means of a hatch cover.

Haulage

Overland carriage of cargo or containers between named locations/points.
Synonym: Cartage

Haulier
Road carrier.

Heated Container

Thermal container served by a heat-producing appliance.

Heavy Lift

Cargo piece exceeding the capacity of normal loading equipment and requiring special equipment and rigging methods for handling.

Heavy-Lift Vessel

Vessel specially designed and equipped for the carriage of heavy cargo.

Held Covered

Abbreviation: H/C. Provisional acceptance of risk, subject to confirmation that cover is needed at a later date. Where applicable to an existing insurance, cover is conditional, in practice, on prompt advice to the underwriter as soon as the insured is aware of the circumstances to be held covered coming into effect, and a reasonable additional premium is payable if the risk held covered comes into effect.
Direct Covered

Hogged

Loading condition of a vessel in such a way that the center of the vessel is slightly raised (archwise in the center).

Hold

Space below the deck of a vessel.

Hold Harmless

Of, relating to, or being an agreement between parties in which one assumes the potential liability for injury that may arise from a situation and thus relieves the other of liability (e.g.: a hold harmless agreement/a hold harmless clause).

Hold Space

Storage space within the bottom (i.e. belly) of an aircraft that can be used to carry cargo.

Home Port

Port of registration of a vessel.

Honor (a Draft)

To pay or accept a draft on presentation.

House Address

Place of receipt or delivery (name and address) in case of carrier haulage.

House Air Waybill

Air Waybill issued by a freight forwarder.
Master Air Waybill

House-to House Transport

Transport of cargo from the premises of the shipper to the premises of the consignee. Note: In the United States the term “Point-to-Point Transport” is used instead of the term “Door-to-Door Transport”, because the term “house” may mean “customs house” or “brokers house”, which are usually located in the port.
Synonym: Door-to-Door Transport Point-to-Point Transport Air Waybill

HS

Harmonized System

Hub

Central transshipment point in a transport structure, serving a number of consignees and/or shippers by means of spokes.

Huckepack Carriage

Piggyback

Hull

Outer shell of a vessel, made of steel plates or other suitable material to keep water outside the vessel.
Seaworthiness

Husbandry

Taking care of a vessel’s non-cargo-related operations as instructed by the master or owner of such vessel.