THE British International Freight Association and airlines have reached agreement on changes to the IATA-owned Cargo Accounts Settlement System (CASS) financial criteria in Europe from July 1.

    The change means that freight forwarders that comply with the terms of the CASS agreement, will no longer be required to provide "expensive and cumbersome bank guarantees, nor provide additional sums after this date except if they default on the CASS payment terms in the future," a BIFA statement said.

    BIFA is a member of the FIATA Airfreight Institute, an integral constituent of the European Air Cargo Programme (EACP). The EACP adopted all of the existing IATA Cargo Agency Resolutions appropriate for Europe when it was established, including the CASS airline billing and forwarder freight settlement programme.

    BIFA's director of trade services, John O'Connell, said: "We consistently articulated the fact that the forwarder is the customer of the airline. Our aim was to ensure that the need for forwarders, who complied with the terms of the CASS agreement, provide expensive and cumbersome bank guarantees, was lifted.

    "As a trade body, our paramount role is to work to further the interests of our members. We value our membership of bodies such as the FIATA Airfreight Institute where we can speak for British forwarders which underpin our country's international trading," Mr O'Connell said.

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