The talk of this morning will concern inaccuracies in the bills of lading and consequencies for the carrier. Captain, as shipowner's representative, must do his best to avoid inaccuracies or even deliberate falsehood when signing bills of lading.
He should remember that the carrier may be exposed to claims from the receivers at the port of destination. If there are no remarks to the state of the cargo, the bills of lading are assumed to be clean. This means that the goods, delivered on board, are in good order and condition. However, if the consignee, at the port of destination, receives the goods being damaged, or finds a shortage, he is entitled to make a claim. Since the carrier will not be able to prove that the goods were loaded as described in the bills of lading, it will be difficult to protest the claim.
Accurate description of the goods is also very important for negotiable bill of lading when the transferee relies solely on the description of goods as they have been loaded (and described)!
So the poor carrier may lose his right to limit liability for cargo damage and/or shortage with some protection and indemnity (P&I) clubs, since some P&I clubs may withhold cover for claims, for example, when the description of the goods in the bills of lading is incorrect.
Therefore, in order to protect his shipowner, a good Captain should not sign bills of lading describing the cargo inaccurately, and should not give way to requests of the charterer and/or shipper to accept a letter of indemnity in return for issuing "clean" bills of lading (without fair clausing) or to issue bills of lading which describe the cargo inaccurately on purpose!
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