Container Packing and Chain of Responsibility: A Practical Checklist

A container can look fine from the outside and still be a problem: heavy cargo stacked at one end, loads that aren’t braced, or a declared weight that doesn’t match reality. On the road, that can mean overloaded axles, poor handling and rollovers. This guide covers the risks, the CoR duties, what to check when packing and receiving containers, and the lessons that come up again and again in cargo transport incidents.

Risks of poorly packed containers

• Overweight or misdeclared containers: overloaded axles, damage to vehicles and roads, and handling problems.
• Uneven weight distribution: heavy cargo at one end or side can cause rollovers and unstable lifts.
• Unrestrained cargo: loads that shift in transit change the vehicle’s balance and can burst doors.
• Unloading injuries: cargo that has moved can fall when doors are opened.
• Hazardous goods: incorrect segregation, labelling or documentation.

CoR duties and weight declarations

Under the Heavy Vehicle National Law, everyone in the chain who influences transport, including consignors, packers, loading managers, loaders and operators, must make sure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that their activities are safe. For freight containers carried by heavy vehicles, the law requires a container weight declaration: a declaration of the weight of the container and its contents that the operator can rely on. It must be accurate.

For export containers, international shipping rules under SOLAS also require a verified gross mass (VGM) before a container is loaded onto a ship. The IMO/ILO/UNECE Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (the CTU Code) gives detailed guidance on safe packing. Check the requirements that apply to your operations.

Container packing checklist

Putting container checks into practice

1. Inspect the container. Check its condition before anything goes in.
2. Plan the load. Work out weight and placement, keeping heavy items low and centred.
3. Pack and restrain. Fill gaps and brace or lash cargo so it can’t move in any direction.
4. Weigh and declare. Record an accurate weight and complete the container weight declaration and VGM where required.
5. Photograph and seal. Take photos of the packed load and record the seal number.
6. Review problems. Follow up any issues reported by drivers or receivers and fix the cause.

Lessons from cargo transport incidents

• Declared weights aren’t always right: weigh rather than estimate, and question declarations that don’t look right.
• Heavy items need securing, not just placing: dense cargo such as machinery, steel or bagged goods can shift under braking.
• Drivers are the last check: give them a way to report concerns and a right to refuse an unsafe load.
• Problems repeat without follow-up: recurring issues with a supplier or packer need to go back to the source.

Container checks on the phone

With DIGI CLIP, packers, loaders and drivers complete container checks on a phone, with photos of the container, the packed load and the seal. Each form is location- and time-stamped. Problems become actions in the Action Log, closed out with evidence, and records can be exported as part of your chain of responsibility evidence.

Illustrative scenario: a shifted load

A receiver opening a container at a warehouse finds pallets have shifted against the doors. The team opens the doors carefully, records the problem in DIGI CLIP with photos, and an action goes to the freight forwarder. The packing site adds bracing requirements to its checklist, and the action is closed out with photos of the next correctly braced load.

This scenario is illustrative. It shows how a business could use DIGI CLIP and is not an account of a specific customer.

See also our guides to chain of responsibility evidence and load restraint on flatbeds.