PRODUCE SHIPMENTS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1718, 8 April 1913, Page 6

PRODUCE SHIPMENTS.

INDEMNITIES UNDER BILLS OF ' lading: ■ At the monthly meeting of the Council of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, held yesterday afternoon,'letters were received from Messrs. Joseph Nathan and Co., and Mr. E. W: De Gyullay (general manager for Australia of the China Traders' Insurance Co.,' Ltd.), on the question- of indemnities given under bills of lading. Messrs. Natlian and Co. wrote:—"During tho present season of dairying produce shipments a goud deal of cheese on various occasions lias been received in Wellington, ex coastal vessels, in an unsatisfactory condition. Tlnv on-carrying steamers have refused to give clean bills of lading, and-in order to facilitate the negotiation of documents it has been necessary to give the shipping companies certain indemnities to release the bills of lading. As you know produco of this kind is insured 'all risks.' ■'therefore, if tho shipping companies, irrespective of whether' they are legally responsible'for tho damage or not, obtain indemnities over their bills of lading, thej; are absolutely freed from any responsibility. It is contended that such a position .is absolutely unfair, and that bills of lading issued in such form aro , practically fraudulent, and the whole of. the loss is passed immediately on to the insurance companies. In some cases it is'nianifest that the shipping companies arc to homo extent responsible for the unsatisfactory condition of. the cargo, but instead of accepting such responsibility, leave, all loss to fall on the insurance companies, and the insurance companies on their part have little or no chance of ultimately recovering from the shipping companies. The contention wo make is that in such cases there is only one fair way. of . handling the matter to all parties, thus:—That the damage, whatever it is, should be assessed by proper surveyors before tho cargo is so shipped to tho Home steamers." Referring to tho' giving of indemnities under bills of fading, Mr. Gyullay wrote: —"I think you will admit that this is. a most reprehensible practice, as a bill of lading is consequently a fraud. In tho ease which came before me, the damage had.occurred in tiie coastal steamer." Mr. Mabin said it would perhaps mako the matter clear if ho explained. He had taken tho trouble to go into it, and had found that one case reforred to sonio cheese shipped by the. Rimutaka, which had become over-heated in the railway trucks, but it wps not by any means a general practice to . give . indemnities. Another shipping company had informed him that the taking of indemnities was not a general practice. It had doue it cnce, but would not do it again. It was a rase in which some dairy produce was shipped by the llaupiri. In tho future all such produce would be shipped by tho Corinna, which was insulated. Mr. T. Ballinger thought it was a scandalous practice. • Mr. Mabin said ho had the assurance of two companies that the .taking of an Indemnity would net occur again. He could answer for a third company. The caso was apparently an isolated one, and the practice was one that would be discontinued. ■ ' . . • /