2006
A common carrier is required to observe extraordinary diligence in the vigilance over the goods it transports.
I. VIGILANCE OVER THE GOODS
RULES governing common carrier’s LIABILITY over Goods:
General RULE: Common carriers are responsible for the loss, destruction, or deterioration of the goods,
UNLESS the same is due to any of the following causes only:
1) Flood, storm, earthquake, lightning, or other natural disaster or calamity;
2) Act of the public enemy in war, whether international or civil;
3) Act or omission of the shipper or owner of the goods;
4) The character of the goods or defects in the packing or in the containers;
5) Order or act of competent public authority. (Art. 1734)
The CC may absolve itself from liability by proving any of the following DEFENSES:
(2002 Bar exams )
A) That the CC encountered: a An act of God;
— there must have been no delay on the part of the common carrier. Otherwise, if delayed and not for good reason, then it shall be held liable notwithstanding the fact that all the subsequent requisites were present. — must be an unforeseen event or an event which cannot be avoided
— The carrier must have exercised extraordinary
diligence before, during, and after the time of the accident.
—The proximate cause must not be committed by the carrier. If the proximate cause of the event is caused by the carrier, then he cannot invoke the act of God defense.
Under the rule on Contributory Negligence, if the negligence attributable to carrier is not proximate in character, the carrier shall be responsible, although such liability shall be mitigated.
b. Act of public enemy in war;
c. Act by a competent public authority; d. Acts/omissions of the shipper or his agent;
e. The goods or the packaging is inherently defective.
Even if the loss, destruction, or deterioration of the goods should be caused by the character of the goods, or the faulty nature of the packing or of the containers, the common carrier must exercise due diligence to forestall or lessen the loss. EXEMPTING CAUSE
REQUISITES for natural disaster or calamity –
1 The natural disaster must have been the proximate cause of the loss
2 It must have been the only cause of the loss
3 The common carrier must have exercised due diligence to prevent or minimize before , during and after the natural disaster
4 The common carrier has not negligently incurred delay in transporting the goods
REQUISITES for act of public enemy - 1. The act of public enemy must have been the proximate of the loss
2 It must have been the only cause of the loss
3 The common carrier must have exercised due diligence to prevent or minimize before , during and after the act of public enemy in war.
REQUSITE FOR act or omission of Shipper -
1 That the act or omission of the shipper /owner of the goods must have been the proximate cause of the loss
2 That it must have been the only cause of the loss.
REQUSITES for character of goods , fault in packing or containers-
1. That the loss , destruction or deterioration was caused by the character of the goods ; or the faulty nature of the packing /containers
2. That the common carrier had exercised due diligence to forestall or lessen the loss.
REQUISTES for the act of public authority –
1. The common carrier must prove that the public authority had the power to issue the order for the destruction / seizure of the goods.
B.) Another defensive strategy to escape liability is to invoke that it exercised extraordinary diligence to prevent or minimize the loss at the time the accident occurred.
Negligence is the failure to observe due diligence with respect to the circumstances at hand.
Contributory Negligence is the failure to observe due diligence that an ordinary or
prudent man undertakes in relation to the negligence of another.
When does the carrier’s responsibility over the goods arise?
The carrier shall be liable the moment the goods arrive in his possession whether actual or constructive, until such time that the carrier delivers the same to the consignee OR the consignee has been informed of the arrival of the goods and the consignee had reasonable time to remove the same.
Under maritime laws, the responsibility of the carrier ends when the goods were transmitted by the carrier to the customs arrastre operator. Recall that before the goods are delivered to the consignee, the state has the responsibility to ensure that the goods being brought in are in accordance with the law.
EFFECT: The carrier would no longer be liable. The succeeding relationship would be between the consignee and the arrastre operator, the relationship governing them would be akin to a contract of Deposit. There is already an existing Contract of carriage when the carrier took possession of the cargo by placing it on a lighter or barge manned by its authorized employees. (COMPANIA MARITIMA vs. INSURANCE COMP )
A bill of lading that was issued covering certain shipment which contained a provision that the carrier does not assume liability for any loss /damage to the goods once they have been under the custody of the custom or other authorities or when they have been delivered at ship’s tackle have been considered valid , because it was held that it is not contrary to morals and public policy ; said stipulation is clear and have been adopted to mitigate the responsibility of the common carrier. (LU DO vs. BINAMIRA) Stoppage in Transitu is the right of the unpaid seller who has parted with the possession of the goods to stop them in transit, when the buyer of goods is or becomes insolvent.
Requisites:
1 Seller must be an unpaid seller; 2 Goods must be in transit;
3 Buyer must be in a state of insolvency;
EFFECT: Once the right is exercised, the common carrier becomes a mere
warehouseman.
In the event that the UNPAID Seller exercises its right of stoppage in transitu , the carrier thereafter holds the goods in the capacity of an ordinary bailee or warehouseman and shall be liable only as such , upon the theory that the exercise of the right by the unpaid seller , such terminates the contract of carriage.
A STIPULATION LIMITING LIABILITY IS