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12. DELAY, CONSEQUENTIAL LOSS, ETC.
(1) Arrival times are not guaranteed by the Carrier. If the Carrier is held liable in respect of delay, consequential loss or damage other than loss of or damage to the Goods, the liability of the Carrier shall be limited to double the freight for the transport covered by this Bill of Lading, or the value of the Goods as determined in Clause 11 whichever is the less.
(2) If at any time the carriage is or is likely to be affected by any hindrance, risk, delay, difficulty or disadvantage of any kind (including the condition of the Goods), whensoever and wheresoever arising (whether or not the carriage has commenced) the Carrier may:
(a) without notice to the Merchant abandon the carriage of the Goods and where reasonably possible place the Goods or any part of them at the Merchant's disposal at any place which the Carrier may deem safe and convenient, whereupon the responsibility of the Carrier in respect of such Goods shall cease.
(b) without prejudice to the Carrier's rights subsequently to abandon the Carriage under (a) above, continue the carriage. In any event the Carrier shall be entitled to full charges on Goods received for carriage and the Merchant shall pay any additional costs resulting from the above mentioned circumstances.
(3) The liability of the Carrier in respect of the Goods shall cease on the delivery or other disposition of the Goods in accordance with the orders or recommendations given by any Government or Authority or any person acting or purporting to act as or on behalf of such Government or Authority.
13. DEFENCES
The defences and limits of liability provided for in these Conditions shall apply in any actions against the Carrier for loss of or damage or delay to the Goods whether the action be founded in contract or in tort.
14. LIABILITY OF OTHER PERSONS
(1) Any person or vessel whatsoever, including but not limited to, the Carrier's servants or agents, any independent contractor or his servants or agents, and all others by whom the whole or any part of the contract evidenced by this Bill of Lading. whether directly or indirectly, is procured, performed or undertaken, shall have the benefit of all provisions in this Bill of Lading benefiting the Carrier as if such provisions were expressly for his benefit and in entering into this contract the Carrier to the extent of these provisions, does so not only on his own behalf but also as agent or trustee for such persons and vessels and such persons and vessels shall to this extent be or be deemed to be parties to this contract.
(2) The aggregate of the amounts recoverable from the Carrier and the persons referred to in paragraph (2) of Clause 5 shall in no case exceed the limits provided for in these conditions.
15. METHOD AND ROUTE OF TRANSPORTATION
(1) The Carrier may at any time, with or without notice to the Merchant, use any means of transport or storage whatsoever; load or carry the Goods on any vessel whether named on the front hereof or not; stow the Goods, whether containerised or not, on or under deck; transfer the Goods from one conveyance to another including transhipping or carrying the same on a vessel other than that named on the front hereof or by any other means of transport whatsoever; at any place unpack or remove Goods which have been stuffed in or on a Container and forward the same in any manner whatsoever; proceed at any speed and by any route in his discretion (whether or not the nearest or most direct or customary or advertised route) and proceed to or stay at any place whatsoever once or more often and in any order; load or unload the Goods from any conveyance at any place; comply with any orders or recommendations given by any Government or Authority or any person or body acting or purporting to act as or on behalf of such Government or Authority or having under the terms of the insurance on the conveyance employed by the Carrier the right to give orders or directions; permit the vessel to proceed with or without pilots, to tow or be towed or be dry-docked; permit the vessel to carry livestock, Goods of all kinds, dangerous or otherwise, contraband, explosives, munitions or warlike stores and sail armed or unarmed.
(2) The liberties set out in paragraph (1) of this Clause may be invoked by the Carrier for any purposes whatsoever whether or not connected with the Carriage of the Goods. Anything done in accordance with paragraph (1) of this Clause or any delay arising there from shall be deemed to be within the contractual Carriage and shall not be a deviation of whatsoever nature of degree.
16. DELIVERY
If delivery of the Goods or any part thereof is not taken by the Merchant, at the time and place when and where the Carrier is entitled to call upon the Merchant to take delivery thereon, the Carrier shall be entitled to store the Goods or any part thereof at the sole risk of the Merchant, where upon the liability of the Carrier in respect of the Goods or that part thereof stored as aforesaid (as the case may be) shall wholly cease and the cost of such storage (if paid by or payable by the Carrier or any agent of sub-contractor of the Carrier) shall forthwith upon demand be paid by the Merchant to the Carrier.
17. BOTH-TO BLAME COLLISION
If the vessel on which the Goods are carried (the carrying vessel) comes into collision with any other vessel or object (the non-carrying vessel or object) as a result of the negligence of the non-carrying vessel or object or the owner of, charterer of or person responsible for the non-carrying vessel or object, the Merchant undertakes to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Carrier against all claims by or liability to (and any expense arising therefrom) any vessel or person in respect of any loss of, or damage to, or any claim whatsoever of the Merchant paid or payable to the Merchant by the non-carrying vessel or object, or the owner of, charterer of or person responsible for the non-carrying vessel or object and set off, recouped or recovered by such vessel, object or person(s) against the Carrier, the carrying vessel or her owners or charterers.
18. FREIGHT AND CHARGES
(1) Freight shall be paid in cash without discount and, whether prepayable or payable at destination, shall be considered as earned on receipt of the Goods and not to be returned or relinquished in any event.
(2) Freight and all other amounts mentioned in this Bill of Lading are to be paid in the currency named in the Bill of Lading or, at the carrier's option in the currency of the country of dispatch or destination at the highest rate of exchange for Bankers Sight Bills current for prepayable Freight on the day of dispatch and for Freight payable at destination on the day when the Merchant is notified of arrival of the Goods there or on the day of withdrawal of the delivery order, whichever rate is the higher, or at the option of the Carrier on the date of the Bill of Lading.
(3) All dues, taxes and charges or other expenses in connection with the Goods shall be paid by the Merchant.
(4) The Merchant shall reimburse the Carrier in proportion to the amount of Freight for any costs for deviation or delay or any other increase of costs of whatever nature caused by war, warlike operations, epidemics, strikes, governments or force majeure.
(5) The Merchant warrants the correctness of the declaration of contents, insurance, weight, measurement or value of the Goods but the Carrier reserves the right to have the contents inspected and the weight, measurement and value verified. If on such inspection it is found the declaration is not correct it is agreed that a sum equal either to five times the difference between the correct figure and the Freight charged, or to double the correct Freight less the Freight charged whichever sum is the smaller, shall be payable as linquidated damage to the Carrier for his inspection costs and losses of Freight on other Goods notwithstanding any other sum having been stated on the Bill of Lading as Freight payable.
19. LIEN
The Carrier shall have a lien on Goods and any documents relating thereto for all sums whatsoever due at any time to the Carrier from the Merchant and for General Average contributions to whomsoever due and for the costs of recovering the same and the Carrier shall have the right to sell the Goods and documents by public auction or private treaty, without notice to the Merchant and at the Merchant's expense and without any liability towards the Merchant.
20. GENERAL AVERAGE
(1) The Carrier may declare General Average which shall be adjustable according to the York/Antwerp Rules of 1974 at any place at the option of the Carrier and the amended Jason Clause as approved by BIMCO is to be considered as incorporated herein and the Merchant shall provide such security as may be required by the Carrier in this connection.
(2) Notwithstanding (1) above, the Merchant shall defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Carrier in respect of any claim (and any expense arising therefrom) of a General Average nature which may be made on the Carrier and shall provide such security as may be required by the Carrier in this connection.
(3) The Carrier shall be under no obligation to take any steps whatsoever to collect security for General Average contributions due to the Merchant.
21. NOTICE
Unless notice of loss or damage to the Goods and general nature of it be given in writing to the Carrier or the persons referred to in paragraph 2 of Clause 5 at the place of delivery before or at the time of the removal of the Goods into the custody of the person entitled to delivery thereto under this Bill of Lading, or if the loss or damage be not apparent, within seven consecutive days thereafter, such removal shall be prima facie evidence of the delivery by the Carrier of the Goods as described in this Bill of Lading.
22. NON DELIVERY
If this Bill of Lading is issued evidencing the Carriers Contract of Carriage by Combined Transport, failure to effect delivery within 90 days after the expiry of a time limit agreed and expressed herein or, where no time limit is agreed and so expressed, failure to effect delivery within 90 days after the time it would be reasonable to allow for diligent completion of the combined transport operation shall, in the absence of the evidence to the contrary, give to the party entitled to receive delivery, the right to treat the Goods as lost.
23. TIME BAR
The Carrier shall be discharged of all liability under the Terms and Conditions of this Bill of Lading, unless suit is brought within nine months after
(1) the delivery of the Goods, or
(2) the date when the Goods should have been delivered, or
(3) the date when in accordance with Clause 22, failure to deliver the Goods would, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, give to the party entitled to receive delivery, the right to treat the Goods as lost.
In the event that such time period shall be found contrary to any Convention or law compulsorily applicable, the period covered by such Convention or law shall then apply but in that circumstance only.
24. VARIATION OF THE CONTRACT
No servant or agent of the Carrier shall have power to waive or vary any of the terms hereof unless such waiver or variation is in writing and is specifically authorised or ratified in writing by a director or officer of the Carrier who has the actual authority of the Carrier so to waive or vary.
25. PARTIAL INVALIDITY
If any provision in this Bill of Lading is held to be invalid or unenforceable by any court or regulatory or self regulatory agency or body, such invalidity or un enforceability shall attach only to such provision. The validity of the remaining provisions shall not be affected thereby and this Bill of Lading contract shall be carried out as if such invalid or unenforceable provision were not contained therein.
26. AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST CLAUSE (see definition * below)
In case of a combined transport carriage to or from the Continent of Africa, or the Middle East, the responsibility of the Carrier prior to loading and subsequent to discharge from the vessel at a port in the Continent of Africa, or the Middle East notwithstanding any other provisions to the contrary in this Bill of Lading, shall be
(1) Where the stage of carriage where the loss or damage occurred is known and the Carrier has sub-contracted that stage, the Carrier shall have the full benefit of all rights, limitations and exclusions of liability available to such sub-contractor in Contract between the Carrier and such sub-contractor and in any law, statute or regulation and the liability of the Carrier shall not exceed the amount recovered, if any. by the Carrier from such sub-contractor.
(2) In all other cases the Carrier shall be under no liability whatsoever and howsoever arising.
*For the purposes of this Bill of Lading only, the Middle East is expressly defined as: - Bahrian, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, PDR of Yemen, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yeman Arab Republic and Afghanistan.
27. DEMISE CLAUSE
If the ship is not owned or chartered by demise to the Company or line by whom this Bill of Lading is issued (as may be the case notwithstanding anything that appears to the contrary) this Bill of Lading shall take effect only as a contract with the owner or demise charterer as the case may be as Principal made through the agency of the said Company or Line who act as agents only and shall be under no personal liability whatsoever in respect thereof
27. LAW AND JURISDICTION
The Contract evidenced by or contained in this Bill of Lading shall be governed by the law and Civil Code of business as stated on the reverse of this Bill of Lading and any claim or dispute arising hereunder or in connection herewith shall (without prejudice to the Carrier's right to commence proceedings in any other jurisdiction) be subject to the jurisdiction of the country in which that place of business is situated.
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