This story began, like all such stories, with hopes and expectations I will be brief – I live and
This story began, like all such stories, with hopes and expectations
I will be brief – I live and work in Serbia and have a business here. I purchased goods in China for a substantial amount and, expecting to make a profit, shipped them to Serbia. I chose a certain Dmitry Kudrevatykh as the freight forwarder, through the Serbian company VIVILOG (VIVOLOG DOO NOVI SAD, address: Železnička 20, Novi Sad, Serbia, company registration number (MB): 21862061, PIB: 113410621). I chose him because he was recommended by Nikolai Khovansky, with whom I had previously worked in Russia for more than fifteen years. That recommendation carried so much weight for me that I did not check VIVOLOG, and that was a mistake.
So, my containers sailed to the Port of Rijeka for onward delivery to Belgrade.
The first container seemed to go smoothly. It arrived from Rijeka in Belgrade, was customs-cleared, and we put the goods in our warehouse. At the same time, we duly paid every invoice issued by the freight forwarder, including the freight charges for the first and second containers.
But then the second container arrived in Belgrade and stopped there. Dmitry suddenly went on holiday and became unavailable. Suspecting that something was wrong, we went to the carrier – DELTA (DELTA TRANSPORTNI SISTEM – D.T.S. DOO BEOGRAD, address: Vladimira Popovića 6, office B07, 11070 Belgrade, Serbia, company registration number (MB): 20443120, PIB: 105719592) – and found out that our container had been placed on hold because that same VIVOLOG had not paid anything at all. How much had not been paid and what we were supposed to do, these gentlemen, who are very proud of being a very large company (those were the words of DELTA’s director himself during the negotiations), apparently did not consider important enough to tell an individual customer.
And a little about this DELTA and its director
His main argument during the negotiations is that their company is large and respected
We will leave that without comment
But their conduct can hardly be called worthy of respect
During the negotiations they say – the container is with us and we are holding it
We say – give us the information
The director replies – who are you, I do not know you, our contract is with VIVOLOG
Fine, we say, then resolve the problem with VIVOLOG
No, they reply, you resolve it
And what exactly are we supposed to resolve? According to our records, we paid VIVOLOG everything it invoiced – the freight and the costs for the first container. No one did anything with the second container and no one invoiced us for anything.
Four letters to both companies asking them to provide information about the location of the cargo, the reasons for its detention, any debts, which so far we have only heard about indirectly, and so on – no response for three weeks.
And the icing on the cake – we ask DELTA to hold negotiations with us – and receive the reply: we have been forbidden to negotiate with you
Let us look at the situation from our perspective – we paid all costs to the freight forwarder; what is happening in the relationship between the freight forwarder and the carrier – we do not know. We know absolutely nothing: where our cargo is, why it is there rather than with us, and how we can get it back – under what conditions
And DELTA’s conduct in this case resembles the actions of fraudsters – I am not asserting that it is fraud, but let us read what the Serbian Criminal Code says about fraud – does it not look similar?
We cannot assert anything; we do not know what is happening. Maybe DELTA’s director is currently on holiday in the same place as Kudrevatykh and both are unavailable, which is why we are not getting a response. Anything is possible, including that DELTA’s internet was cut off for non-payment and they are unable to send us a reply
But that is exactly the point: we ourselves are tired of guessing what is really happening. And we cannot find out, because DELTA, the company most interested in resolving the problem, gives us no information at all and does not wish to negotiate with us.
We will be glad if we are wrong in our assessment of DELTA, but as of today we have no information that would allow us to revise it.
We had barely left the negotiations when a message arrived from Dmitry
Gentlemen,
The freight forwarder called me:
- he is not aware of any arrangement to pay only the second invoice in order to release the container. They insist on full payment of all expenses
- they also insist on advance payment for services related to delivering the cargo from the second container to Montenegro; I will issue the additional invoice and send it to you during the day.
To put this into plain language – DELTA is demanding that we make an advance payment for handling the second container, including paying for the handling and dispatch of cargo in that container that belongs to a Montenegrin company and will be sent to it. And this is a condition for releasing the second container to us
That same day, we sent letters to VIVOLOG and DELTA asking them to explain the situation – to repeat, we paid for all services relating to the first container on 21 August (the negotiations and the letter were on 26 August), asking where our cargo was and why we were not receiving it, as well as notifying them that we were terminating the agreement with VIVOLOG because it had failed to perform its obligations. In total, we sent four sets of letters to both addressees and received no replies
In other words – it is unclear where the container is, we do not have the cargo, we have paid for all the services, and nobody is telling us anything
Actually, no, we did receive something – more precisely, I received messages at my address from Dmitry and VIVOLOG, except they came from a company registered in Saint Petersburg (ООО «ВИВО ЛОГИСТИК», OGRN 1207800000902, INN 7805761226, KPP 780501001, registered address: 198095, Saint Petersburg, intracity municipality Narvsky Okrug, Marshal Govorov St., 35, building letter A, office 210, premises 16N. General Director — Dmitry Aleksandrovich Kudrevatykh)
I am currently on holiday.
I am receiving strange letters from your manager; thank you for at least having this letter translated into Russian.
I am very sorry that our cooperation has reached this point.
Please let me know when you intend to pay the invoices for the local operations relating to the first container.
I also inform you that the agent has been instructed not to issue the release for the third container until further instructions from us.
As for your letter: termination of the agreement does not release the parties from obligations that arose previously.
In my view, the most appropriate and least painful way to resolve the current situation is as follows: you pay us the invoices for the local costs relating to the first container and the freight for the third container; we, in turn, settle the debt to the Serbian freight forwarder, after which you will be able to handle your cargo as you see fit.
First, as I already wrote – the local costs for the first container were paid on 21 August, so it is unclear why we should pay them again
Second, and far more interestingly, a third container suddenly entered the picture. It is being handled through an entirely different freight forwarder – it is still in transit, and nobody has even issued an invoice for it yet. Yet Kudrevatykh has already put it on hold, instructed that it not be released, and made payment for the third container a condition for the return of the second container, after Dmitry Kudrevatykh uses that money to pay the debt to DELTA. What will then happen to the third container, the payment for which, as Kudrevatykh himself writes, will be used to settle HIS debt for the second container, is anyone’s guess
And now the third message
To be honest, I do not quite understand why there are accusations and some kind of threats from your side (this probably refers to the claims).
You should understand that Serbia is, so to speak, not my main place of residence or business, and what you are writing about will not affect me very much.
I believe everything can be resolved through dialogue.
My proposal is that I transfer to you in Russia, in roubles, the amount paid for the freight for 2 containers at the NBS exchange rate applicable on the payment dates, and that we end our cooperation there.
For the second container, we paid the local costs and the freight forwarder, as I already informed you earlier.
I will await your response.
The third container as collateral disappeared from the picture
But what costs for the second container did Kudrevatykh pay, if no operations whatsoever were carried out with the second container? It should be in DELTA’s possession, not customs-cleared, not unloaded and not handed over to us.
And in general, we have no idea what he paid DELTA, because as of today we have received no information whatsoever about anything either from Kudrevatykh and his Saint Petersburg and Serbian VIVOLOG companies, of which, as follows from Kudrevatykh’s letter, he could not care less about the Serbian company, or from DELTA. In addition, due to the termination of the agreement with VIVOLOG SRBIJA, to which Kudrevatykh himself does not object, no services can be provided on our behalf. The agreement was terminated on 27 August, and as we remember from Kudrevatykh’s first letter dated 26 August, he was demanding an advance payment from us for the second container, which means that as of the date the agreement was terminated, the services had not been provided
And just look at the logic – so he will refund us the freight for the second container because it was not paid to DELTA, but he has supposedly already paid for non-existent services relating to the second container. Bingo.
Why am I writing all this.
Good people, please sign a freight forwarding agreement with Kudrevatykh and his VIVILOG SRBIJA, which he does not care about, or with VIVOLOG Saint Petersburg – with your advance payment he may be able to settle his debts to DELTA, and DELTA will return our cargo to us. As for your cargo, you will receive it after another trusting customer is found who is willing to work with VIVOLOG without checking the information about it – both companies have ongoing court cases and enforcement orders. Customers like us – special thanks to Nikolai Khovansky for that
And so that the reliability of this account can be understood – at present we have filed two lawsuits against VIVOLOG and DELTA, including claims for damages, and a complaint with the Serbian Prosecutor’s Office – let them examine the legality of their actions. This is about the “threats”, so that it is clear what is being referred to
