Two men walk through a large warehouse with high shelves full of boxes and pallets while having a conversation and looking at a tablet.
Key points at a glance
  • Seamless coverage: Transportation insurance covers your goods against loss and damage – from their point of departure to their final destination.
  • Covered for every eventuality: This insurance is particularly suitable for production and trade companies (policies covering the transportation of goods) and logistics firms (policies covering transport liability).
  • Financially protected: With transport insurance, you cover your financial risk and leave difficult negotiations to AXA in the event of a claim or recourse.
Request advice

Sales advice: 052 269 21 70

Who needs AXA transportation insurance?

Global trade is flourishing. Whether by land, sea or air – raw materials, production goods and products are traded and transported around the world, but are also exposed to many risks during transit. If something gets lost or is damaged or stolen, this very quickly affects entire supply and production chains, and can cause serious financial damage to companies. Then there is the lack of legal certainty if your goods disappear or are damaged on the other side of the globe. Here AXA offers all those involved reliable insurance protection: financial security for manufacturing companies and merchants with all risks transportation insurance, and protection for logistics experts, carriers and forwarding agents against the financial consequences of loss events with comprehensive transport liability cover.

For companies and merchants

Both as a sender and recipient, you have no control over what happens while your goods are being transported – and whether handling or storage meets all requisite criteria in terms of quality and security. For companies sending or receiving goods from A to B, insurance for protecting transported goods is therefore vital. It enables the financial risk of potential damage or losses to be budgeted for, regardless of whether the transported goods are en route between Aarau and Biel or are being flown from Abu Dhabi to Bangalore.

For transport companies

As carriers and forwarding agents or as storage companies, your top priority is to deliver the goods entrusted to you to their destination undamaged and on time. If, for example, a delivery deadline cannot be met due to a scheduling error, if loading is disrupted due to improper storage or the vehicle containing all the transported goods is stolen, not only are high costs incurred but you also bear the liability. Only comprehensive freight forwarder's liability insurance protects you against third-party claims and the associated financial consequences and also acts as defense against unsubstantiated claims.

What does AXA transportation insurance cover?

Our customized cargo insurance is based on in-depth risk analysis and assessment of your special situation - ultimately not every transportation route is equally secure, and not all goods are equally fragile. In addition to the certainty that your goods are optimally protected from departure to arrival at the end destination, you also have a clear solution that your company can budget for. Transport companies are also well placed with freight forwarder's liability insurance from AXA. It covers mishaps with your carriers and forwarding agents as well as associated claims involving both national and international transport.

Cargo insurance

Cargo insurance from AXA that is optimally geared towards SMEs covers the policyholder's financial damage and losses that can occur during the entire transportation phase - stopovers, exhibition and trade fairs, but also political risks such as strikes, unrest, wars or terrorism. In the event of a claim or recourse, AXA also takes charge of the negotiations and supports you with its worldwide network of experts when it comes to loss assessment and prevention of further costs, including the cost of recovery or destruction of insured goods.

Insured property

  • Goods from the commercial, manufacturing and business sector
  • Goods that you send to business customers by mail, courier or package delivery service
  • Plant, machinery, equipment and furniture
  • Third-party property (such as a customer's machine for repair)
  • Material and displays for exhibitions and trade fair stands
  • Items that you take with you as part of your commercial activities with your own vehicles and means of transportation, such as sample goods

Insured risks

  • Damage or loss, such as when a container goes overboard during sea transport
  • Theft 
  • War, strike, civil unrest, and terrorism
  • General average contributions 

Freight forwarder's liability insurance

As a logistics company, you are responsible for the secure and timely forwarding of transported goods, and you are liable if there is a loss event, such as damage, delay or incomplete delivery to the destination. Freight forwarder's liability insurance from AXA which is geared towards your sector and individual needs offers reliable protection against resultant costs. We support you and your employees if there is a loss event, providing rapid and complicated processing, worldwide support from legal experts and average adjusters as well as covering the cost of measures to prevent or minimize damage. We deal with defending any unjustified claims made against you.

For carriers

Insurance protection for carriers who can be held liable for loss or damage of their freight and for failure to deliver by the delivery deadline. 

For warehousing companies

For claims relating to the storage of third-party goods, the insurance protects the responsible warehousing agents against the consequences. For instance, if the packaging of goods was damaged during storage and the goods are now spoiled.

For forwarding agents

Customers can hold the forwarding agent responsible for property and financial losses arising from transportation. For instance, if the transported goods were subject to the incorrect customs duty.

What supplementary benefits are available?

The risk of business interruption due to transportation damage is high. Because you quickly lose business income if the use of the transported goods is ultimately compromised or they cannot be used at all. Or even worse: additional costs are incurred because you can't deliver to a customer as agreed and you now have to pay a penalty. Both risks can be insured with cargo insurance.

Business interruption insurance for transportation

If the delivery company's vehicle has an accident en route or another insured risk affects or completely interrupts your business, AXA meets the costs.

  • Net operating profit that would have been generated if the planned use of the transported goods had taken place
  • Ongoing operating costs that continue to be incurred during the loss event
  • Additional expense of preventing or minimizing the loss

Contractual penalties insurance for transportation 

If indemnifiable damage occurs as part of transportation insurance which prevents you meeting a contractually agreed delivery deadline, AXA pays the penalty.

Documents for transportation insurance

Experts in transportation damage

Average adjusters

If loss/damage occurs in transit, several different parties and forwarding steps are usually involved. Assessment of the damage by an independent expert leads to clarity.

Support and frequently asked questions

  • The company commissioned with transporting our products has freight forwarder's liability insurance. Do we still need transportation insurance?

    Yes, transportation insurance is also a benefit in this instance, as the liability of forwarding agents and carriers commissioned with transportation is usually restricted and includes certain relief opportunities whereby you are either not protected at all or inadequately protected against the financial consequences of a claim. With transportation insurance from AXA, your goods are covered at their full value regardless of the liability of the firms commissioned with transportation.

  • Is loading and unloading covered by the insurance?

    Your transported goods are fully covered from end to end: during loading, reloading, unloading and carriage to and from the means of transportation. During this time, the insurance covers losses, theft, and damage.

  • How is transportation damage abroad determined and compensated?

    While AXA itself is responsible for loss assessment and regulation in Switzerland, our worldwide network of experts is responsible for this in other countries. If you have a claim as policyholder, you simply contact your allocated average adjuster so that the claim can be registered and individual measures taken for minimization or compensation purposes.

A person wearing safety goggles and gloves is working intently on a piece of wood with a drill in a well-equipped workshop.

Who's liable if my company makes a mistake?

Accidents can happen. Get the right commercial liability insurance to protect your company against third-party compensation claims.

To Commercial third-party liability insurance