648

THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE [No. 26

GENERAL

3. The Department will not be responsible for any loss of or damage or delay to any goods or for any loss or delay to any person caused by the non-fulfilment of any road motor, shipping, or other service not managed and controlled by the Department. In the event of the failure or refusal of any such service to accept any goods from the Department such goods will either be held by the Department at the sole risk in every respect of the owner or delivered to the direction of the owner, subject in every case to the payment of the charges for carriage already performed, and also of any charges and expenses for the custody, care, and maintenance of the goods, or incurred in the fulfilment of the direction of the owner.

4. Special Rate of Charges for Understatements

5. Where in any consignment-note, waybill, or other document required to be delivered in respect of any goods delivered upon a railway there is any understatement of the quantity, weight, measurement, or value of the goods, or any misdescription of their nature, which, if undetected, might lead to their being charged for at less than the proper rate; then in lieu of charges at the ordinary rate, and whether the understatement or misdescription is wilful or not, there shall be payable in respect of all the goods referred to in such document double the ordinary rate of charges on the whole consignment, and these charges shall be payable irrespective of any fine that may be incurred under subsection (1) of section 25 of the Government Railways Act, 1949.

6. Fractional Parts of Pence, Hundredweights, and Miles

7. Except where otherwise provided, in computing passenger fares, and freight and charges on luggage, parcels, &c., goods, live-stock traffic, wharfage, and berthing, fractions of 1d. less than a ½d. in the final result will be omitted; ½d. or more in the final result will be taken as 1d.

8. Where rates or charges are prescribed to be increased or decreased and a fraction of 1d. occurs in the rate as so increased or decreased, such fraction shall if less than ½d. be omitted, and if ½d. or over shall be taken as 1d.

9. Weights of less than 1 cwt. will be taken as follows for the purpose of computing charges at tonnage rates:

4. In computing rates and charges odd fractions of a mile amounting to 5 chains and over will be taken as an additional mile; less than 5 chains will be omitted.

5. Charges Collected on Behalf of Clubs, Consignors, &c.

6. Except where a special arrangement is entered into, a commission of 5 per cent. will be charged on all amounts collected by the Department on behalf of express companies and forwarding agents, motor and steamship companies, picnic parties, racing or sports clubs, or any other persons or bodies. Minimum charge, 7d.

7. When notice of charges to be collected from a consignee of goods on behalf of the consignor of such goods is given to and accepted by the Department such acceptance shall in every case be expressly subject to the condition that though the Department will use reasonable care for the collection of such amounts before the goods are delivered up by the Department to the consignee, the Department gives no guarantee that such charges will be collected by it. In particular every person desiring the Department to collect charges on his behalf shall be deemed to have agreed to be bound by all the rules and practice of the Department in connection with the collection of moneys, either in respect of the granting of credit accounts or otherwise.

8. Refunds and Adjustments on Freights

9. A deduction of 10 per cent. (minimum, 2s.; maximum, 11s.) may be made on all sums payable by the Department by way of refund not being sums coming within the provision of the first paragraph of Regulation 118, unless it is shown that the Department is entirely responsible for the circumstances giving rise to the refund in each case.

10. In cases where a charge of 5s. 6d. per wagon is enforced, as provided in paragraph 23 of Regulation 114 no further deduction will be made as provided in paragraph 1 of this regulation.

11. Where wrong declarations of weight or other errors are made by consignors or senders which give rise to overcharges necessitating adjustments in freight by the Department, either before or after delivery at the destination station, a deduction of 10 per cent. (minimum 2s.; maximum, 11s.) may be made on all sums payable by the Department by way of refunds in connection with such adjustments.