House bill of lading (HBL)

When a forwarder books space with a shipping line, the line issues its bill of lading to the forwarder. The forwarder then issues its own house bill of lading to the exporter, naming the real shipper and consignee and, usually, its own agent at destination as the contact for release. The HBL is the document the cargo owner actually sees, presents to its bank under a letter of credit and uses to collect the goods from the forwarder's agent.

The HBL and the master bill of lading (MBL) describe the same cargo under two separate contracts. On the MBL, the forwarder or its agents appear as shipper and consignee; on the HBL, the trading parties appear. In LCL consolidation one MBL covers a whole container while each customer receives an HBL for its own share, for example ten house bills under a single 40-foot container.

Who may issue an HBL depends on the country. A forwarder issuing its own bills in US trades must hold a Federal Maritime Commission license or registration as an NVOCC, while forwarders elsewhere often use their own form or the FIATA multimodal bill of lading. The forwarder must keep the HBL and MBL consistent on container numbers, package counts and weights, because its destination agent obtains the cargo against one and releases it against the other.