Art 354 – 376 – Code of Commerce
so without this cause, he shall be liable for all the losses which the goods he
ARTICLE 354.
may have been stipulated for such case.
In the absence of a bill of lading, disputes shall be determined by the legal proofs which the parties may present in support of their respective claims, according to the general provisions established in this Code for commercial contracts.
ARTICLE 355.
The responsibility of the carrier shall commence from the moment he receives the merchandise, personally or through a person charged for the purpose, at the place indicated for receiving them.
ARTICLE 356.
Carriers may refuse packages which appear unfit for
transports may suffer from any other cause, beside paying the sum which
When on account of said cause of force majeure, the carrier had to take another route which produced an increase in transportation charges, he shall be reimbursed for such increase upon formal proof thereof. ARTICLE 360.
The shipper, without changing the place where the delivery is to be made, may change the consignment of the goods which he delivered to the carrier, provided that at the time of ordering the change of consignee the bill of lading signed by the carrier, if one has been issued, be returned to him, in exchange for another wherein the novation of the
transportation; and if the carriage is to be made by railway, and the shipment is insisted upon, the company shall transport them, being exempt from all responsibility if its objections, is made to appear in the bill of lading.
contract appears.
ARTICLE 357.
account of the shipper.
If by reason of well-founded suspicion of falsity in the declaration as to the contents of a package the carrier should decide to examine it, he shall proceed with his investigation in the presence of witnesses, with the shipper or consignee in attendance. If the shipper or consignee who has to be cited does not attend, the examination shall be made before a notary, who shall prepare a memorandum of the result of the investigation, for such purposes as may
be proper. If the declaration of the shipper should be true, the expense occasioned by the examination and that of carefully repacking the packages shall be for the account of the carrier and in a contrary case for the account of the shipper. ARTICLE 358.
If there is no period fixed for the delivery of the goods the carrier shall be bound to forward them in the first shipment of the same or similar goods which he may make point where he must deliver them; and should he not do so, the damages caused by the delay should be for his
account. ARTICLE 359.
If there is an agreement between the shipper and the carrier as to the road over which the conveyance is to be made, the carrier may not change the route, unless it be by reason of force majeure; and should he do
The expenses which this change of consignment occasions shall be for the
ARTICLE 361.
[The merchandise shall be transported at the risk and
venture of the shipper, if the contrary has not been expressly stipulated. As a consequence, all the losses and deteriorations which the goods may suffer during the transportation by reason of fortuitous event, force majeure, or the inherent nature and defect of the goods, shall be for the account and risk of the shipper. cdta Proof of these accidents is incumbent upon the carrier.] ARTICLE 362.
Nevertheless, the carrier shall be liable for the losses and damages resulting from the causes mentioned in the preceding article if it is proved, as against him, that they arose through his negligence or by reason of his having failed to take the precautions which usage has established among careful persons, unless the shipper has committed fraud in the bill of lading, representing the goods to be of a kind or quality different from what
they really were. If, notwithstanding the precautions referred to in this article, the goods transported run the risk of being lost, on account of their nature or by reason of unavoidable accident, there being no time for their owners to dispose of them, the carrier may proceed to sell them, placing them for this
purpose at the disposal of the judicial authority or of the officials designated
ascertained from the outside part of such packages, in which case the claim
by special provisions.
shall be admitted only at the time of receipt.
ARTICLE 363.
After the periods mentioned have elapsed, or the transportation charges
Outside of the cases mentioned in the second paragraph of
Article 361, the carrier shall be obliged to deliver the goods shipped in the same condition in which, according to the bill of lading, they were found at the time they were received, without any damage or impairment, and failing to do so, to pay the value which those not delivered may have at the point
have been paid, no claim shall be admitted against the carrier with regard to the condition in which the goods transported were delivered. ARTICLE 367.
If doubts and disputes should arise between the consignee
If those not delivered form part of the goods transported, the consignee
and the carrier with respect to the condition of the goods transported at the time their delivery to the former is made, the goods shall be examined by experts appointed by the parties, and, in case of disagreement, by a third
may refuse to receive the latter, when he proves that he cannot make use
one appointed by the judicial authority, the results to be reduced to writing;
of them independently of the others.
and if the interested parties should not agree with the expert opinion and
and at the time at which their delivery should have been made.
ARTICLE 364.
If the effect of the damage referred to in Article 361 is merely a diminution in the value of the goods, the obligation of the carrier shall be reduced to the payment of the amount which, in the judgment of experts, constitutes such difference in value. ARTICLE 365.
If, in consequence of the damage, the goods are rendered useless for sale and consumption for the purposes for which they are properly destined, the consignee shall not be bound to receive them, and he may have them in the hands of the carrier, demanding of the latter their value at the current price on that day. If among the damaged goods there should be some pieces in good condition and without any defect, the foregoing provision shall be applicable with respect to those damaged and the consignee shall receive those which are sound, this segregation to be made by distinct and separate pieces and without dividing a single object, unless the consignee proves the impossibility of conveniently making use of them in this form. The same rule shall be applied to merchandise in bales or packages, separating those parcels which appear sound. ARTICLE 366.
Within the twenty-four hours following the receipt of the
merchandise, the claim against the carrier for damage or average be found therein upon opening the packages, may be made, provided that the indications of the damage or average which gives rise to the claim cannot be
they do not settle their differences, the merchandise shall be deposited in a safe warehouse by order of the judicial authority, and they shall exercise their rights in the manner that may be proper. ARTICLE 368.
The carrier must deliver to the consignee, without any delay or obstruction, the goods which he may have received, by the mere fact of being named in the bill of lading to receive them; and if he does not do so, he shall be liable for the damages which may be caused thereby. ARTICLE 369.
If the consignee cannot be found at the residence indicated
in the bill of lading, or if he refuses to pay the transportation charges and expenses, or if he refuses to receive the goods, the municipal judge, where there is none of the first instance, shall provide for their deposit at the disposal of the shipper, this deposit producing all the effects of delivery without prejudice to third parties with a better right. ARTICLE 370.
If a period has been fixed for the delivery of the goods, it must be made within such time, and, for failure to do so, the carrier shall pay the indemnity stipulated in the bill of lading, neither the shipper nor the consignee being entitled to anything else. If no indemnity has been stipulated and the delay exceeds the time fixed in the bill of lading, the carrier shall be liable for the damages which the delay may have caused. ARTICLE 371.
In case of delay through the fault of the carrier, referred to in the preceding articles, the consignee may leave the goods transported in
the hands of the former, advising him thereof in writing before their arrival
However, the reservation made by the latter shall not relieve them from the
at the point of destination.
responsibilities which they may have incurred by their own acts.
When this abandonment takes place, the carrier shall pay the full value of
ARTICLE 374.
the goods as if they had been lost or mislaid.
defer the payment of the expenses and transportation charges of the goods they receive after the lapse of twenty-four hours following their delivery; and in case of delay in this payment, the carrier may demand the judicial
If the abandonment is not made, the indemnification for losses and damages by reason of the delay cannot exceed the current price which the goods transported would have had on the day and at the place in which they should have been delivered; this same rule is to be observed in all other cases in which this indemnity may be due. ARTICLE 372.
The value of the goods which the carrier must pay in cases if
loss or misplacement shall be determined in accordance with that declared in the bill of lading, the shipper not being allowed to present proof that among the goods declared therein there were articles of greater value and
The consignees to whom the shipment was made may not
sale of the goods transported in an amount necessary to cover the cost of transportation and the expenses incurred. ARTICLE 375.
The goods transported shall be especially bound to answer
for the cost of transportation and for the expenses and fees incurred for them during their conveyance and until the moment of their delivery. This special right shall prescribe eight days after the delivery has been made, and once prescribed, the carrier shall have no other action than that
money.
corresponding to him as an ordinary creditor.
Horses, vehicles, vessels, equipment and all other principal and accessory
ARTICLE 376.
means of transportation shall be especially bound in favor of the shipper, although with respect to railroads said liability shall be subordinated to the
owed him for the transportation and expenses of the goods delivered to the consignee shall not be cut off by the bankruptcy of the latter, provided it is
provisions of the laws of concession with respect to the property, and to what this Code established as to the manner and form of effecting seizures
claimed within the eight days mentioned in the preceding article.
and attachments against said companies. ARTICLE 373.
The carrier who makes the delivery of the merchandise to
the consignee by virtue of combined agreements or services with other carriers shall assume the obligations of those who preceded him in the conveyance, reserving his right to proceed against the latter if he was not the party directly responsible for the fault which gave rise to the claim of the shipper or consignee. The carrier who makes the delivery shall likewise acquire all the actions and rights of those who preceded him in the conveyance. The shipper and the consignee shall have an immediate right of action against the carrier who executed the transportation contract, or against the other carriers who may have received the goods transported without reservation.
The preference of the carrier to the payment of what is
