I was relocating to India from Sharjah, United Arab Emirates in September 2007. I sent a few electronic items( 2 TVs & a home theatre system) by sea cargo through Rona Cargo in Sharjah to Cochin, Kerala, India. The consignment was supposed to be delivered at my home within 3-4 weeks, but the actual delivery took place after nearly 2 months. It seems Rona Cargo has another local agent in Kerala who does the clearing at customs and other documentation work. When the consignment was finally delivered, there were two cartons.. one a normal cardboard box and another one a wooden crate. The delivery was done late in the evening (at around 7.30.p.m) and the delivery boys quickly left after taking my mother's signature on the delivery note. Later when we opened the wooden crate, we noticed the home theater system missing. We immediately reported this to both Rona Cargo and the local agent. The local agent asked us to weigh the items and see if the total was around 84 kg. After weighing the items, we found it was only 62 kg, quite evident that 22 kg went missing. There were other confusions regarding the consignment number.

Until this date, they have not been able to trace the missing item and both are blaming each other.
I have spent enough money on phone calls to Rona Cargo and the every time the answer is "we are investigating it". 5 months have passed since the consignment was sent, and their investigation is still continuing.

Please beware... the culprits may be Rona Cargo, or the local agents or some body at the customs... I hold Rona Cargo responsible, as it is their duty to deliver the consignment safe at the destination. They cannot just wash their hands off any responsibility. If you are sending any items through any cargo company, please make sure the following:

1. Get the list of items being sent, written by the agents on the receipt (bill), so that you have evidence of handing over the items to the cargo agents.
2. Weigh the total items and get the total weight recorded in the receipt by the agents.
3. Send a copy of the items to the recipient in advance.
4. On delivery, open the boxes and make sure all items sent are present and have not suffered any damage. Do not sign the delivery note without verifying this.

Regards,
Aparna.