The Minister's Conditions of Carriage
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These Apply to all Controlled Undertakings, which will Cancel Their Present Conditions: They Concern Every Class of Carriage Except Furniture Transport and Heavy Haulage
THESE Conditions of Carriage (RU/D/20) apply to all contracts . for carriage entered into by the
Minister on and after the and are in substitution for those set out in Document RH/D/22.
(1) The Minister is not a common carrier and will accept goods for carriage only on the conditions herein set Out (except so far as they may be varied in writing by the Minister after consultation with the industry).
' (2) (a) Any person contracting with the Minister for the carriage of goods (hereinafter called " the customer ") shall be liable for the Minister's charges for carriage without prejudice to the Minister's rights against the consignee or any other person.
(b) The customer warrants that be is the owner of the goods or the authorized agent of the owner for the purpose of entering into this contract or otherwise will indemnify the Minister, his agents or sub-contracto•rs in respect of any claim by the owner in respect of the goods which would not be recoverable if the owner was a party to this contract.
(3) The Minister may, in the performance of the contract, use any vehicles, trailers, appliances, craft or things and employ sub-contractors or agents who shall incur no greater liability to the customer than that of the Minister hereunder.
References in these Conditions to the " Carrier " are to the carrier employed by the Minister in the performance of the contract.
Where, by the customer's request or agreement, the goods are carried over any part of the journey by rail or canal, they will be carried subject to the Regulations and Conditions of the railway or canal, and the customer shall be deemed to have notice of such regulations and conditions. •
Right to Refuse Reserved . (4) The Minister reserves the right to refuse any goods for transport. Explosives and other dangerous goods must be accompanied by a full declaration of their nature and contents and properly and safely packed for transport by road. Unless otherwise specifically agreed in writing, customers shall indemnify the Minister against all claims for damage or injury to property or persons arising from the carriage of explosive, limited to £25,000 any one accident ; but provided that the explosives have been declared and packed as required by this condition the indemnity shall not apply to claims occasioned solely by the negligence or wilful misconduct of the carrier, his servants or agents.
" Dangerous goods" means goods which are specified in the Special Classification of Dangerous Goods issued 133.' the Railway Clearing House, or, not being specified therein, are not accepted by the railway companies for conveyance on the ground of their dangerous or hazardous nature.
(5) AU goods shall be adequately packed' and addressed in accordance with the trade custom for goods of their kind, and the address shall include the consignee's name and full postal address (including the number of the postal district, if any). The customer shall declare the nature of the goods, number, of packages and gross weight of each consignment.' (0) The Minister may' at any time require proof of the nature, condition, quantity, weight or value of the goods at the time they are received by him for transport, notwithstanding any declaration by the customer under these conditions.
Notification of Claims
(7) Notice in writing of any loss or damage must be given to the carrier whose name and address are endorsed on the relative consignment note within four days of the date of delivery, or, in the case of nondelivery, within 14 days of the time when the goods should have been delivered.
The Minister will not be liable for any Tess or damage arising from any cause whatever, where this condition has not been strictly complied with (8) The Minister's liability under these conditions shall in no case exceed the rate of 2200 per gross ton of the goods lost, damaged or affected, except where 'the weight of the consignment does not exceed one gross cwt., in which case the liability shall not exceed £10 per consignment.
. (9) (i) The Minister will not in any event, from whatever cause arising, be responsible for :— (a) Loss or damage to bullion, cash, bank notes, Treasury notes, bonds and securities, jewellery, watches and similar property.
(b) Damage, destruction, loss or waste occasioned by or due to 'inherent ;rice or deterioration or wear or tear.
(c) Indirect or consequential loss.
(d) Loss of a particular market whether held daily or at intervals.
(e) Damage, destruction or loss by theft or pilferage occurring with the connivance of the consignor or consignee or the servant or agent of either of them.
(f) Loss or damage to any goods or articles put into returned wrappers, boxes, cases, baskets or packages described or consigned as empties.
(g) Death of or injury to live
stock, unless such death or injury is directly caused by fire or accident to the vehicle -by impact or overturning, by negligence in loading or securing, or by the wilful misconduct of the carrier, his servants or agents.
(h) Loss from defective condition of meat, except damage directly caused by fire or accident to the vehicle by impact or overturning.
(i) Loss or damage, injury, or delay directly or indirectly oc"ca.-. sioned by, happening through or in consequence of war, invasion, acts of foreign enemies, hostilities (whether war be declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, military or usurped power, martial law, riots, strikes, lock-outs, labour disturbances, or stoppages or restraint of labour or other combination ot workmen or masters, malicious damage, civil commotions, confiscation, nationalization, requisition, occupation or destruction of or damage to property by or under the order' of any government or public or local authority, volcanic eruption, earthquake or other convulsion of nature, flood or frost, an act of God, force majeure, pirates, restraints or princes, rulers and peoples, any Act of Parliament, including loss of possession arising out of the illegal occupation, requisition or detention of the goods or of any premises, vehicle or thing containing the goods, or looting, pillage or incendiarism directly or indirectly connected with any of the circumstances or causes above-mentioned, and in the event of any claim for loss or damage to the goods, the customer shall, if so required, and as a condition precedent to any liability of the Minister or carrier, prove that the loss or damage was not directly or indirectly occasioned by, happening through or in consequence of, any of the above accepted circumstances or causes.
Other Risks Not Covered
(j) Breakage of glass, earthenware, china, marble, and other brittle.
articles, scientific instruments, pictures, works of art, antiques, curios and the like, unless caused by an accident to the vehicle or by the Wilful misconduct of the carrier, . his servants, or agents.
(ii) The Minister will be responsible -for damage due to wet resulting solely from the negligence of the carrier, his servants or agents in sheeting or omitting to sheet the goods, but will not otherwise be responsible except in 'the case of wilful misconduct of the carrier, his servants or agents with respect to :- (a) Loss or damage to gummed stationery, raw cotton, grasses, fibres, mineral oils (other. than lubricating oils).
(b) Damage, destruction, loss or waste occasioned by or due to leakage or spilling, fermentation, Al2
spontaneous combustion, moth, vermin, insects, damp, mildew, rust, atmospheric or climatic conditions.
(iii) In any case of which the Minister is not relieved from responsibility by (i) or (ii) above or by any of the other provisions of these Conditions, the Minister will be responsible for damage or loss occasioned by the negligence or wilful misconduct of the carrier, his servionts oroagents, but not otherwise.
(10) The Minister shall have a general as well as a particular lien for all moneys due to him on all goods and documents entrusted to him. The general lien conferred by this Condition 'shall not prejudice an unpaid vendor's right of stoppage in transit.
(11) Perishable goods .which are (a) refused by the consignee, (b) not taken away from the place to which • they are consigned within a reasonable time after arrival, (c) insufficiently addressed, (d) not delivered for any cause beyond the control of the Minister or his agent, may be sold without notice to the sender or the consignee and payment or tender of the net proceeds of any such sale after deduction of freight charges and expenses shall be equivalent to
• delivery. The. Minister or his agent shall have the right to sell, such goods immediately without notice to secure the freight if such freight is not paid on demand when the goods arrive at their destination or are offered for delivery.
(12) The customer will deliver the goods on to and the consignee will take delivery from the side or tailboard of the vehicle. The Minister will not be responsible for any loss or damage arising from the stowage or tuistowage of the goods on the vehicle or from the overloading or unsafe loading of the vehicle arising therefrom, . where such stowage or unstowage is performed by the customer or the consignee or his agent by reason of the special nature or his special knowledge.. of the goods.
Nothing in this condition shall be construed as preventing the carrier from giving assistance in loading or unloading the goods on to or from the vehicle where such assistance is customary and practicable, but assistance so given shall be without any liability on the part of the Minister or the carrier and shall be at the sole risk of the customer or the consignee, as the case may be, who shall indemnify the Minister and the carrier accordingly.
Ton or 80 Cubic Feet (13) Except where the quotation definitely states otherwise, all quotations based on a tonnage rate shall apply to the gross weight, unless the • goods exceed 80 cubic ft. in measurement per ton weight, in which case the tonrage rate shall apply to each measurement di 80 cubic ft.
(14) Quotations are furnished on the assumption that there is safe and proper access by public highways or other 'roads to the points at which collection or delivery is to be made.
In the event of there not being such
safe and proper access the customer will pay to the Minister any reasonable expense to which he is put for the purpose of accepting or tendering the goods.
Unless warning signs are clearly visible the customer shall accept all responsibility for damage within his premises to :— (i) Vehicles or loads, due to unsuitability of means for access to the loading or unloading points.
(a) Roadways, manholes and covers, mains, pipes, bridges, weighbridges or approaches leading to the loading or unloading point, .clue to the weight or nature of the vehicle or its load • Where the customer is aware or ought to be aware of any limitations on the size or weight of vehicles and loads which can safely be dealt with on the premises at which collection or delivery is to be made, it shall be his responsibility to inform the Minister, failing which he shall indemnify the Minister in respect of damage referred to in (i) and (ii).
(15) The rates quoted by the Minister allow a reasonable time for loading and unloading vehicles and do not, in Any event, provide for any delay in loading end unloading which brings that total time involved for each operation to a period in excess of. 15 minutes per ton or 10 minutes per ton where road tank wagons are utilized. Any unreasonable delays shall entitle the Minister to make a charge in respect of demurrage, in addition to the quoted rate.
Non-delivery Terms
(16) If the consignee declines or is unable to take delivery of the goods the Minister will, where practicable, communicate with the consignor, but shall be under no obligation to do so, and the Minister, in addition to all other rights may, at the expense of the customer, and as if the customer had expressly instructed him to do so. return the goods to the customer or deposit them in a warehouse, and such return or deposit shall be treated for all purposes as delivery to the consignee under the contract, and the Minister shall be entitled to recover from the customer reasonable charges in respect of the additional carriage and any expenses incurred by him in connection with such return or deposit.
(17) Where quotations are made on estimated weights supplied to the Minister by the customer, a variation of more than 10 per cent. over or under the estimated weight shall give the Minister the right to amend the rate quoted, or to cancel the quotation entirely, at his option.
(18) All quotations Are subject to amendment and unless otherwise sped; fleetly stated the rates quoted are subject to acceptance by the Minister at the time the traffic is actually offered for transport, and subject to the condition that the work can be -carried on without interruption. The acceptance of any contract is subject to vehicles being available at the necessary time. In the event of any emergency over which the Minister has
no control, he reserves to himself the right to review or terminate the contract at any time, and delivery of the goods at any other place than that provided in the contract Shall, where such delivery is necessitated by the emergency, or by Government order. be deemed to be delivery • under the contract.
(19) It is a condition of any contract carried out under these Conditions that any claim must be made in the prescribed form through the carrier, whose name and address are endorsed on the relative consignment note, save ...There Service vehicles (Army, Navy or Air Force) are used, when any claim must be made direct to the Minister.
Using Other Carriers
(20) Where the contract a for delivery of the goods to be made to another carrier, the following conditions shall apply (a) The contract shall' be considered to have been completed when the goods are tendered at the station, wharf, depot or other premises at which delivery is to be taken by the other carrier.
(b) Any moneys paid to the Minister or his agent for the conveyance of goods beyond the delivery point as above-mentioned will be received by him for the customer's convenience and will be held by him in trust for the carrier to whom the goods are to be delivered.
(21) The following additional conditionsshall apply where the Minister accepts bulk liquids for carriage :—
(i) Should the load or any part thereof be found to be solid on arrival at the consignee's premises or at the terminal of that part of the journey undertaken by the Minister, the customer shall arrange for the supply of such heat, in the form of steam or otherwise, as is necessary to liquefy the load, and any costs incurred on this account shall be for the account of the customer.
(ii) All charges will be calculated on the weight of the goods when received by the Minister for transport. and no claim based on loss of weight will be allowed against the Minister unless supported by weight tickets obtained by passing the vehicle concerned over an authorized public weighbridge.
(iii) The charges for carriage, unless otherwise provided for in writing, cover the services of one man and the customary length of hose not exceeding 40 ft, to load or unload the vehicle.
(iv) The Minister accepts no responsibility for loss or damage arising from the conditidn of the tank or the equipment, but he wilt afford the customer facilities for inspection prior to loading, if required.
(22) No agents orpersons employed by the Minister Olher than those expressly authorized by him for that purpose shag have any authority to alter, vary, or qualify in any way these conditions of carriage.