930 THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE No. 33

20.3.2 “14. Carrier not liable in certain circumstances: Notwithstanding any of the
other provisions of this Act, a carrier is not liable as such for the loss of or damage to
goods occurring while he is responsible for them under a contract of carriage to the
extent that he proves that the loss or damage resulted directly and without fault on his
part from—
(a) Inherent vice; or
(b) Any breach of either of the terms implied in the contract by section 17 of this Act; or
(c) Seizure under legal process; or
(d) Saving or attempting to save life or property in peril.”
20.3.3 “15. Limitation of amount of carrier’s liability—(1) For the purposes of this Act,
(a) The liability of the contracting carrier to the contracting party; and
(b) The separate liability of any actual carrier to the contracting carrier; and
(c) The joint liability of any actual carriers (where there are more than 1) to the
contracting carrier; and
(d) The joint and several liability of every successive carrier under a contract to which
section 13 of this Act applies,—
is limited in amount in each case to the sum of $500 for each unit of goods lost or
damaged or, in the case of contract “at declared value risk”, the amount specified in
the contract.
(2) The limitation of amount for the time being specified in subsection (1) of this
section does not apply to—
(a) Any liability for the loss of or damage to any goods intentionally caused by the
carrier; or
(b) Any liability arising out of the terms of the contract for damages other than for the
loss of or damage to the goods; or
(c) Any liability arising out of the terms of the contract for damages consequential upon
the loss of or damage to the goods.”

20.4 Unit of goods
Section 3 of the Carriage of Goods Act 1979 in respect of a “unit of goods” provides:
“3. Meaning of “unit of goods”—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,
“unit of goods” or “unit”,
(a) In relation to bulk cargo means the customary freight unit; that is, the unit of bulk,
weight, or measurement upon which the freight for that type of cargo is customarily
computed or adjusted: Provided that, where the freight payable under a contract of
carriage is computed or adjusted upon a specified unit of bulk, weight, or
measurement, references in the Act to “unit of goods” or “unit” shall be deemed, for
the purposes of the carriage of goods pursuant to that contract, to be references to that
specified unit:
(b) In relation to goods contained in a container, means the container load of goods;
and includes, where the container is provided by the contracting party, the container:
(d) In relation to goods loaded on a pallet, means the pallet load of goods; and
includes, where the pallet is provided by the contracting party, the pallet:
(e) In relation to goods contained in a package that is not contained in a larger package
or in a container, nor loaded on a pallet, means the package of goods:
(f) In relation to goods that are unitised for the purposes of carriage in any matter not
referred to in any of the preceding paragraphs of this subsection, means the unit of
goods as so unitised:
(g) In relation to goods (other than baggage) not referred to in any of the preceding
paragraphs of this subsection, means each item of the goods:
(h) In relation to baggage, means each item of baggage.
(2) For the purpose of determining the limit of the liability of any carrier, the limit of
liability prescribed by section 15 of this Act in respect of each unit of goods relates to
the unit of goods as accepted for carriage by the actual carrier or, where the carriage is
undertaken by more than one carrier, by the first actual carrier, whether or not that
unit is subsequently packed, repacked, or unpacked, or otherwise aggregated with or
segregated from any other goods, at any stage of the carriage.”

20.5 Warranty as to condition of goods
Section 17 of the Carriage of Goods Act 1979 in respect of the warranty by contracting to the
condition of goods provides:
“17. Contracting party to warrant condition of goods, etc.— (1) In every contract of
carriage there shall be implied on the part of the contracting party a term—
(a) That, except as disclosed in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, the goods
are fit to be carried and stored in accordance with the contract in the condition and
packed in the manner in which they are tendered for carriage:
(b) That, except as disclosed in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, the
provisions of every other enactment (if any) that he is required to comply with relating
to the consignment for carriage of the goods, or undertake to carry them subject to
such reasonable terms and conditions as he may require having regard to the
circumstances of the case.
(2) If, before the goods are accepted for carriage, the contracting party notifies the
contracting carrier or the first actual carrier of any material particular that would
otherwise constitute a breach of either of the terms specified in subsection (1) of this
section, the carrier may refuse to carry the goods, or undertake to carry them subject to
such reasonable terms and conditions as he may require having regard to the
circumstances of the case.
(3) Notwithstanding anything in section 7 of this Act, the provisions of this section
apply, with the necessary modifications, to contracts of carriage between contracting
carriers and actual carriers, and between actual carriers, subject to any express term in
the contract.”