Welcome to the first part of a series that will help you understand the Incoterms rules, which are used by importers and exporters to ensure that they’re on the same page about their respective responsibilities relating to the carriage of goods.

This week, we’ve got a 2-minute video that sets the scene by looking at the origins of the Incoterms rules, their relevance to importers’ and exporters’ insurance needs, and the appropriate rules used when shipping containerised goods, which is probably relevant to 99% of your cargo insurance customers.

In 30-second bites over the next four weeks, we’ll introduce you to each of the most-commonly used terms in turn, looking at how and where they sit on a sliding scale of responsibility – from those where more of the burden is on the buyer through to those where the seller retains more of it.

Finally, to give you the complete picture, we’ll wrap things up with a look at the terms that you’re maybe less likely to come across.