Under CIF the seller books and pays the vessel and a minimum-cover insurance to the destination port. Risk, however, passes to the buyer once the goods are on board at the port of origin: damage during the voyage is the buyer’s claim against the insurer.
It is valid only for sea or inland-waterway transport. For containerised cargo the ICC recommends CIP, which works the same way for any mode and places delivery at handover to the first carrier, not alongside the ship.
Related terms