Obligations of the Carrier

Carrier Rights and Obligations

Mdsseducation.net – During its voyage, a ship can face the possibility of being hit by various kinds of disasters, both in the form of disasters caused by the movement of the sea itself and those caused by human behavior or actions. These dangers, as well as other risks, become greater or more diverse if the ship sails on the open sea or high seas.

However, apart from the dangers that can be calculated, many other dangers cannot be predicted or predicted at all that will occur.

Rights and Obligations of the Carrier

As a party undertaking transportation at sea using a ship as a means of transportation, the carrier is burdened with certain responsibilities regarding the cargo it receives from cargo shippers for transportation. The legal relationship between the carrier (Carrier) the sender of the cargo (Shipper) and the recipient of the cargo (Consignee) on the other hand regarding responsibility for the cargo being transported, in the practice of commercial shipping in Indonesia there are two legal systems, namely:

• The first regulation comes from the Indonesian Commercial Law Book (KUHD-RI).
• The second regulation originates from The International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to Bills Loading.

In commercial shipping traffic in Indonesia there are two types of carrier liability systems, namely:

• The accountability system that applies in Domestic Shipping relations in Indonesia.
  The accountability system is applicable in Inter-Ocean Shipping.

In Article II of the Hague Rules, it is stated that the carrier has obligations and responsibilities for the cargo transported on his ship, in terms of loading, handling, compaction, transportation, custody, and maintenance. , as well as unloading the ship’s cargo handed over to him for transportation.

The main provisions that limit the carrier’s responsibility and obligations as regulated in the articles of The Hague Rules are as follows:

• Due Diligence Clause
• Prima Facie Evidence
• Negligence Clause
• Deviation Clause
• Un-acquittal Clause
• Paramount Clause

Carrier Responsibilities

According to the Trade Code in the Transportation of Goods: The obligations are:
Maintaining the safety of goods from the time they are received and handed over;

• Provide compensation for any damage, loss, etc. in part or whole.
• Responsible for the use of goods transported by workers during transportation (Ps 468 etc.).

Rights in Carriage of Goods:

• The carrier has the right to compensation for damages suffered because the documents which were a condition for transporting the goods were not handed over to him properly. (Ps. 478).
• Article 479: The carrier has the right to compensation for losses suffered as a result of being given incorrect or incomplete notification regarding the time and nature of the goods unless he has known or should have known the nature and nature of the goods. The carrier may at any time free himself from goods that pose a danger to the cargo or the ship, also by destroying them without being required to compensate for the loss due to this. This applies to goods that are considered to be smuggled goods if the carrier is given incorrect and incomplete notification regarding the goods.
• And other articles in the Commercial Code concerning the rights of the carrier in transporting goods.

Determination of The Hague Rules on Transportation Losses

In the main points of the carrier’s responsibility for the cargo transported by his ship, the carrier is responsible for losses that arise if the carrier fails to carry out the main points of responsibility because the carrier’s responsibility in the case of losses to the ship’s cargo can involve a very broad field, it is necessary to make necessary limitations where the carrier cannot be charged with the obligation to bear responsibility and even has certain immunities against losses that may arise. Furthermore, The Hague Rules stipulate that neither the carrier nor the ship is responsible for losses or damages that occur because of or are caused by:

• Fire, unless caused by the carrier’s fault
• Maritime dangers/disasters and calamities
• Act of God
• Acts of war
• Hostile actions from local people
• Arrest by the king
• Quarantine restrictions
• Actions or omissions of the sender/owner of the goods
• Strikes or other actions resembling a strike
• Riot or rebellion
• Losses due to shrinkage of stomach contents or shrinkage of goods weight
• Non-compliant packaging
• Unclear marking
• A hidden flaw
• Other causes that occur beyond the fault or knowledge of the carrier, unless it can be proven that the carrier’s error or negligence contributed to causing the loss or damage.

Provisions Concerning Rights and Obligations

Provisions on rights and obligations/responsibilities have been established, the purpose of which is to provide clear limitations on the location of the fault, and in line with that, it is also determined who should bear the losses for damage or loss of the cargo being transported. In many cases, the determination of the location of the fault for the

loss or damage to the cargo is carried out through the claim process. The meaning of a claim in shipping is “a claim for compensation submitted by the shipper or his representative, or by the recipient of the cargo to the carrier, in connection with the shortage or damage that occurs to the cargo as a result of various risks during transportation from the port of loading to the port of destination”.

Types of claims

There are two types of claims, namely damage claims and shortage claims.

• Damage claims are “compensation claims for damage to the ship’s cargo” and shortage claims.
• A shortage claim is “a claim submitted because there has been a shortage of loaded collies”.

The basis for claim settlement

The basis for settling claims is based on the Bill of Loading and the Manager’s Receipt from the cargo party against which a claim is submitted. If the B/L is clean, the claim is acknowledged and will then be processed to obtain a decision as to whether damage or loss of cargo is the carrier’s responsibility.

The rejection of claims by the carrier is based on damage or loss of cargo that occurs due to the following things:

• Force Majeure, that is events and circumstances beyond human control.
• Vice Propre or Inherent Vice, namely the state of rotting itself, rotting from within.
• Negligence of the sender/recipient of the cargo