Abandoned · Unclaimed · Refused · Stranded cargo
Pommer & Partners purchases and recovers abandoned, unclaimed, refused and stranded cargo worldwide.
Pommer & Partners purchases and recovers abandoned, unclaimed, refused and stranded cargo worldwide. We handle containerised cargo, bulk commodities, general cargo and warehouse stocks for shipping lines, P&I Clubs, insurers, shipowners, freight forwarders, terminals and cargo interests.
Where title and the regulatory position allow it, we act as a principal buyer — we quote for the consignment, buy it for our own account on an AS IS, WHERE IS basis and take on the practical work of moving, recovering, remarketing or lawfully removing it. We are not an intermediary passing enquiries on, and not a listing platform waiting for a bid.
With more than seven decades of marine and cargo salvage behind the firm, our starting question on every file is the same: what is still recoverable, in which market, and how quickly can the cargo leave the terminal. See our distressed cargo buyer and abandoned container cargo solutions for the detail.
Who instructs us
What we take on
FCL and LCL consignments left at terminals, depots and bonded warehouses.
Grain, feed, fertiliser, minerals, oils and other bulk parcels without a receiver.
Breakbulk, palletised goods, bagged cargo, drums, machinery and project consignments.
Uncollected stock, insolvency inventory and residual lots in third-party storage.
Principal buyer · not a listing platform
An online auction hands the problem to whoever happens to bid. Pommer & Partners takes the file: we assess the cargo, quote for it, and where appropriate buy it as principal and take responsibility for what happens next.
Where title and the regulatory position allow, we buy the cargo for our own account as principal.
Placement with traders, processors and end users through our international buyer network.
Movement of the cargo out of the port of discharge to a market where it can be used.
Sale in the country of discharge where customs, import and product rules permit it.
Sorting, reconditioning, repacking, blending or refining to restore commercial usability.
Industrial, technical or material recovery routes when the original use is closed.
Compliant destruction only where commercial recovery is genuinely impossible.
Work alongside terminals, hauliers, depots, surveyors, brokers and the competent authorities.
Cargo bought in its present condition at its present location, reflected in the price.
An indication of whether the cargo carries recoverable value, without a drawn-out process.
Where appropriate, a recovery structure in which our remuneration follows the result achieved.
Survey reports, photographs and documents are treated as confidential case material.
The commercial problem
Abandoned cargo is rarely a storage question alone. Every day the consignment stays where it is, the financial exposure of the carrier, insurer or terminal grows while the cargo itself becomes worth less.
Container demurrage accrues from the moment free time expires, regardless of cargo value.
Equipment detention charges continue for as long as the box is not returned to the carrier.
Quay, yard and warehouse storage is invoiced daily and rarely stops without a decision.
Units stay out of rotation, tying up equipment the carrier needs elsewhere.
Uncollected cargo occupies slots, plugs and yard space in already constrained terminals.
Moisture, heat, infestation, caking and shelf life reduce recoverable value week by week.
Each further inspection, sampling round and laboratory analysis adds to the file.
Destruction, waste classification and treatment are a pure cost if recovery is never explored.
Unresolved entries, missing documents and expiring deadlines narrow the available routes.
The longer the file stays open, the larger the claim, the indemnity and the write-off.
Our purpose on these files is to reverse that direction: to establish whether the cargo still carries recoverable value, to find the market or recovery route in which that value exists, and to turn a growing port liability into a commercial recovery — or, where nothing remains, into a controlled and final removal.
Typical circumstances
Cargo is seldom abandoned deliberately. It is usually the end point of a commercial, documentary or regulatory problem that nobody resolved in time.
How an abandoned cargo file moves
Commodity, quantity, location, photos, survey reports, documents and current status.
We evaluate whether the cargo has recoverable commercial value and on what route.
Direct purchase, remarketing, re-export, recycling or another commercially viable solution.
We coordinate the agreed removal or onward movement of the cargo with the parties involved.
Reports and photographs can be provided confidentially. Public pricing is not required, and no cargo is advertised or listed publicly at any stage. Send the details to contact@pommerpartners.com.
Who we work with
Abandoned and unclaimed cargo is normally handled by a claims manager, a carrier's cargo department, a terminal operator or a lawyer acting for one of them. Those are the parties we deal with directly.
Geographic reach
Pommer & Partners operates internationally. We can assess abandoned, unclaimed and stranded cargo wherever it lies — container terminals, bulk berths, bonded warehouses, depots and inland facilities — working with local surveyors, agents and service providers appointed for the case.
FAQ
Abandoned cargo is bought by specialist distressed cargo buyers rather than by ordinary traders. Pommer & Partners purchases and recovers abandoned cargo worldwide, with the outcome depending on the commodity, its condition, its location and the customs, sanctions and waste regulations that apply to the consignment.
Pommer & Partners primarily purchases or remarkets the cargo inside abandoned and unclaimed containers, not empty second-hand container units. Our interest is the commodity, the stock or the material in the box and the route by which it can be recovered, resold or lawfully removed.
The shipping line, terminal, insurer or other cargo interest is left with a consignment that continues to accrue storage, demurrage and detention. In practice they need an alternative buyer, or a re-export, recovery, recycling or disposal route, and each of these depends on title, customs status and local regulations.
In many situations commercial recovery is possible. Before any sale, legal title, the authority to dispose of the cargo, its customs status and the applicable local regulations have to be established. Where that position is clear, a sale, re-export or recovery route can usually be structured.
Yes. Depending on the case, Pommer & Partners can act as principal buyer and purchase the cargo for its own account on an AS IS, WHERE IS basis, rather than acting only as an intermediary or listing agent.
We work internationally and can evaluate cargo at ports, terminals, depots and warehouses in most trading regions, using our own network of buyers, processors, surveyors and service providers together with local representatives appointed for the case.
Yes. The service is designed for P&I Clubs, marine and cargo insurers, container carriers, shipowners, terminals, forwarders and their appointed lawyers, surveyors and agents, and our role in each case is disclosed in writing.
Commodity, quantity, location, packaging or container details, photographs, any survey report, the reason for abandonment, the customs status of the consignment and the time constraints that apply.
Trust & compliance
Transactions and services are subject to verification and applicable regulation, including:
Purchases and sales require evidence of ownership and authority to sell, or the written authority of the insurer or party entitled to dispose of the cargo. Recovery, recycling and disposal routes depend on waste classification and on applicable environmental, transport and customs rules in the countries involved. Potential alternative use of food or agricultural cargo, including animal-feed applications, depends on cargo condition, laboratory results and applicable food and feed legislation, and is only pursued where the competent authorities and the relevant rules allow it.
Related cargo solutions
Solutions for cargo inside abandoned and unclaimed containers.
Shipments never collected or claimed by the consignee.
Freight left behind in transit, at depots and in warehouses.
Consignments refused on arrival by receivers or authorities.
Boxes immobilised by documents, clearance or insolvency.
Commercial routes for cargo detained in customs custody.
Principal purchase of distressed cargo, AS IS, WHERE IS.
Wet, contaminated and heat-affected consignments.
Off-specification and quality-rejected consignments.
Distressed grain, feed, oils and foodstuffs.
How recovery companies, consultants and buyers differ.
Submit cargo details
Send us the cargo details for a confidential commercial assessment — commodity, quantity, location, condition, customs status and any survey report.
contact@pommerpartners.com