BILLS OF LADING.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1703, 20 March 1913, Page 8

BILLS OF LADING.

THE SHIPOWNERS' LIABILITY. FURTHER EXEMPTIONS. UNDER THE ACT OF 1913. "Complaint is rife amongsl: consignees that bills of lading contain harsh and unreasonable restrictions by which shipowners have endeavoured lo contract themselves out of any liability for goods whilst in their charge. It would be a great boon to shippers and consignees of goods if it. were possible for the Imperial Government to act in conjunction with the Dominion Governments, and frame bills of lading suitable for universal use, which would bo of such a nature that shippers .and consignees could be afforded adequate protection." The above statement was made before the Empire Trado Commission by Mr. A. ]•;. Mabin,' chairman of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, and he supplemented. it by saying that tho only means to be adopted for tho recovery of claims against a ship were at present very vexatious to consignees. Such proceedings generally amounted to "barter and bluff" between the consignee and tho shipping company. He urged that tho companies should be required'to "-assume something like common carrier obligations, under which just claims could be recovered as a matter of right, oiul.not by the grace of the company as now. Since Mr. Mabin made his statement a new bill of lading, called "the Australian and New Zealand Steam Trade Bill of Lading, 1913," has Ixen adopted by shipping companies in London, under which they seek to contract themselves out of a few of the obligations they havo hitherto admitted. The first paragraph or pre : oicble of the new document reserves to the ship specifically tho right to call at any way ports, and also to deviate to "any ports or places whatsoever, although ill a contrary (lirection to or out of, or beyond, the ordinary route to port of destination once or oftener in any order, backwards or forwards," for a number of specified purposes, "or for any purpose whatso--ever." Merchants, it is understood, do not attach very great importance to this variation, for fairly full liberties in the matter referred to were reserved to tho ship under the 1912 biil of lading. Among the causes of loss or damage excepted under the old bill was "default or error in judgment of the master, pilot, officers, engineers, mariners, or others." The new document excepts specifically default or crro: 1 in judgment of stevedores also.

In the paragraph exempting the shipowners from liability for damage to fragile goods, the old bill exempted the owners for "dnmage .to castings or show cases," and "breakage of unprotected goods, marble, slate, glass, glassware, chinaware. or earthenware, or other' goods of a brittle cr fragile nature, of any description, from whatsoever cause arising, excentin? improper stowage and handling." The new bill has "damage to castings, cast-iron pipes, or show cases," and the cause "improper stowage and handling" is not mentioned in that paragraph. A new .paragraph is added, however, which is as follows;—" Nothing in this bill of lading shall, however, exempt the shipowners from liability for, improper stowage or improper handling by their servants or agents of goods which do not fall within the operation of tho last preceding paragraph." As the "Inst .preceding paragraph" oxemnts all descriptions of frasilo goods at all likely to be carried, the shipping companies apparently intend lo contract themselves out-of all liability for damage by improper stowage.

The exception of cast-iron pipes is regarded by such hardware firms as occasionally handle litem as being important. Cast-iron pipes are not properly speaking fragile, and the.v can not be broken in the hold exceot by improper stowage. One hardware firm in Welling? ton was successful some time ago in recovering damages from a shipping company for broken pipes, but not until they look the claim into the Courts. If the shipowners' reservation under thpir new bill of lading holds good in law, it will be necessary for firms tendering for supplies to local bodies and others of castiron water pipes to increase their contract prices by. a considerable amount, probably 10 per cent., to insure themselves against possible damage to the pipes in the ship's hold. As things were before the position of the consignee was con-, sidered » precarious one, for improper stowage was always difficult to prove. Tho consignee could not keep a man in tho hold to see where goods were stowed and in what condition they were, when the.v left the slings. Now'-consignees will probably fare much worse. • Another'new provision in tho, 1913 bill of lading requires tho "consignee or .holder of bill of lading to pay charges for sorting and stacking goods on. wharf or in shod." This does not apply to the port of Wellington, where the Harbour Board takes cargo from tho ship's slings and puts it in sheds, but it. will affect importers at practically every other port in Now Zealand.