Work / DHL blog
Incoterms® explained
An eleven-term framework for international trade, organized around the decisions a shipper has to make, not around the alphabet.
Incoterms distribute two things at once: who pays for transport, and who carries the risk, and the two don’t always change hands at the same point in the shipment’s journey. This piece walks through the eleven terms in the order a shipper would actually use them: transport mode first, then who’s best placed to run it, then insurance, then customs.
Knowing who is bearing the risks of the shipment, and when, is essential.
The reference material sits inside that structure: definitions, groupings and the common mistakes to avoid.
