Conditions of cartage

Authority includes any legal or administrative authority exercising any jurisdiction within an Australian state or territory.

 

Carriage means the whole of the operations and services undertaken by the Carrier or any person on behalf of the Carrier in respect of the Goods (whether gratuitously or not), including transporting, loading, unloading, packing, handling, unpacking and Storage of the Goods, towing a trailer and the provision of any advice.

 

Carrier means Richers Transport Pty Ltd (A.C.N. 009 721 788) trading under its own name or under any other business name.

 

Chain of Responsibility Law means the Heavy Vehicle National Law as enacted in any Australian state, the Road Traffic (Administration) Act 2008 (WA) and the Road Traffic (Vehicles) Act 2012 (WA) and any other Commonwealth, state or territory Law dealing with the obligations of parties involved in the transport of goods by road.

 

Consequential Loss means any indirect or consequential loss; loss of use; loss of product or production; delayed, postponed, interrupted or deferred production; inability to produce, deliver or process; wasted expenditure; loss of profit, revenue or anticipated revenue; loss of bargain, contract, expectation or opportunity; liquidated damages; punitive or exemplary damages; in each case arising from or in connection with the performance of the 

Carriage and whether or not foreseeable at the time of entering into any agreement incorporating these conditions.

 

Consignment means the consignment of Goods at any one time from the Consignor in a single load from one address in Australia to another address in Australia.

 

Consignor means the person whose details are set out in the table that appears at the end of this document.

 

Container includes any container, trailer, wagon, transportable tank, pallet, flat rack or any other unit or device used to consolidate Goods.

Damage means physical damage and includes deterioration, evaporation and contamination.

 

Dangerous Goods means Goods that are or may become noxious, dangerous, flammable or damaging or that may harbour or encourage vermin or other pests, or that are or may become liable to harm any property whatsoever.

 

Excluded Goods means pharmaceuticals; cash, securities and negotiable instruments; bullion, gold and other precious metals, precious stones, precious gemstones, precious jewellery and works of art; antiques; refrigerated or perishable goods; bicycles (unless they have been crated or boxed); solar panels (unless they have been crated or boxed); animals and livestock; white goods that are not in their original packaging; any furniture that is not flat packed; household and personal effects, including used furniture; musical instruments; and regulated waste.

 

Force Majeure Event means any event beyond the reasonable control of the Carrier including acts of God, lightning, earthquakes, cyclones, floods, landslides, storms, explosions, fires and any natural disaster, acts of war, acts of public enemies, terrorism, public disorder, riots, civil commotion, malicious damage, vandalism, sabotage, explosions, nuclear accidents, strikes, labour disputes and other industrial disturbances, any road closure or congestion of roads, any quarantine or customs restriction, epidemic or pandemic, cyber warfare, cyberattacks, ransomware attacks, cyber sabotage, any interruption of power supply or scarcity of fuel or any accident, collision or breakdown of a vehicle, machinery or equipment.

 

Goods means the property accepted by the Carrier from, or at the request of, the Consignor for Carriage and includes any Container or packaging supplied by or on behalf of the Consignor.

 

Interest means an amount calculated on any Outstanding Amount at the rate of 10% per annum, compounded annually.

 

Invoice Cost means the invoice cost or value of the Goods. If there is no invoice value, the Invoice Cost is the market value or cost of replacing the Goods with similar goods of the same age and condition.

 

Law means applicable statutes and any associated regulations, proclamations, rules, bylaws, requirements and approvals.

 

Outstanding Amount means any amount which remains unpaid upon the expiry of the credit terms extended by the Carrier or for which the Consignor is otherwise liable, pursuant to these conditions, to the Carrier.

 

PPSA means the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth).

 

Store or Storagemeans receiving Goods into a storage location including confirmation of quantities and batch numbers, storing Goods and handling inbound and outbound Goods at the storage location.

 

Subcontractor includes any person who pursuant to a contract or arrangement with any other person (whether or not the Carrier) performs or agrees to perform the Carriage or any part of it.

• a reference to a person is to be construed as a reference to an individual, body corporate, unincorporated association, partnership, joint venture or government body;
• headings are included for convenience only and do not affect the interpretation of these conditions;
• words importing the singular include the plural and vice versa and words importing a gender include other genders;
• where a word or phrase is defined, other parts of speech and grammatical forms of that word or phrase have corresponding meanings;
• wherever ‘include’ or any form of that word is used, it will be construed as if it were followed by ‘(without being limited to)’; and
• all indemnities survive the termination or expiration of any agreement incorporating these conditions.

The Carrier is not a common carrier and will accept no liability as such. All Goods are carried and all Carriage is performed by the Carrier subject only to these conditions and the Carrier reserves the right to refuse the Carriage of goods for any person and the Carriage of any class of goods at its discretion.

• take reasonable care to protect and safeguard the Goods and to follow any special handling requirements notified to the Carrier by the Consignor;
• provide the Carriage exercising the degree of skill, care and efficiency that would be expected from a competent provider of services of Carriage;
• at its own expense, hold all licences as may be required by Law in connection with the Carriage;
• use reasonable endeavours to deliver the Goods to the address nominated by the Consignor and to effect delivery at the date and time requested by the Consignor (subject to compliance with all Law, including Chain of Responsibility Law);
• to the extent that the Carrier Stores the Goods, account for all Goods received and use modes of Storage appropriate to the nature of the Goods; and
• use reasonable endeavours to comply with the Consignor’s reasonable and lawful directions.

• The Carrier does not warrant or guarantee particular collection or delivery times for Goods.
• Pallets remain the responsibility of the Consignor and will not be exchanged unless prior written arrangements have been made with the Carrier in accordance with the Carrier’s pallet policy, as published from time to time and available on request from the Carrier’s head office.
• To the extent permitted by law, all conditions, guarantees, terms and warranties which would otherwise be imposed or implied into these conditions are excluded. Without limitation, this exclusion applies to any conditions, guarantees, terms or warranties of merchantability or of satisfactory quality applying to the Carriage.
  
  

• ensure that the loading of the Goods onto the Carrier’s vehicle will not cause the vehicle to exceed any dimension or mass limits under Chain of Responsibility Law;
• where the Goods are Dangerous Goods, provide written notice to the Carrier and otherwise comply with clause 15;
• where the Goods require special treatment or handling, provide written notice to the Carrier of the special treatment required; and
• provide all documents, information and assistance necessary to allow the Carrier to comply with Law or the requirements of any Authority.

• the Goods are fit for Carriage and are packed in a manner adequate to withstand the ordinary risks of Carriage having regard to their nature;
• it is authorised by all persons owning or having any interest in the Goods to accept these conditions on their behalf;
• the Goods do not include or contain any Excluded Goods (which the Carrier does not agree to carry);
• all details supplied by the Consignor or any other party with respect to the Goods, including the details of description, items, pallet space, quantity, weight, volume, quality, value and measurements, are correct;
• there is a suitable and safe road and approach for the Carrier and the Carrier’s vehicles to the place from which the Goods are to be collected and the place to which the Goods are to be delivered;
• safe and adequate loading facilities and equipment will be available at any place from which any Goods are to be collected and to which any Goods are to be delivered;
• unless the Consignor advises the Carrier in writing prior to the Carrier agreeing to provide Carriage:
  • the Carriage is supplied for, or in relation to, the purposes of a business, trade, profession or occupation carried on or engaged in by the Consignor; and
  • the consignee of the Goods carries on, or is engaged in, a business, trade, profession or occupation in relation to the Goods; and
• where the Carrier:

  (i) is advised in writing by the Consignor prior to agreeing to provide Carriage that: the Carriage is not supplied for, or in relation to, the purposes of a business, trade, profession or occupation carried on or engaged in by the Consignor; or the consignee of the Goods does not carry on, or is not engaged in, a business, trade, profession or occupation in relation to the Goods, and

  (ii) agrees to perform Carriage notwithstanding the Consignor’s disclosure under clause 4.2(h)(i), the total value of the Goods in any one Consignment does not exceed $500, unless the Carrier otherwise agrees in writing prior to performing the Carriage; and

• unless specifically declared in writing prior to Carriage, the Goods are not Dangerous Goods.

The Carrier relies on the details of description, items, pallet space, quantity, weight, quality, value and measurements supplied by the Consignor but does not admit their accuracy.

The Consignor will indemnify the Carrier in respect of all losses, damages, expenses, claims, actions and proceedings or any other liability suffered or incurred by, or made or instituted against the Carrier arising from:

• the breach of a warranty given by the Consignor in clauses 4.2(b), 4.2(c), 4.2(g) or 4.2(h); and
• any incorrect or wrongful declaration made by the Consignor as to:
  • the purpose for which the Consignor requires the Carriage;
  • the proposed use of the Goods by the consignee; or
  • the value of the Goods in a Consignment.
    
    

• will not be relieved of any of its liabilities or obligations under any agreement incorporating these conditions; and
• will be liable to the Consignor for any act or omission of the Subcontractor as if such act or omission were the act or omission of the Carrier.

• all Subcontractors;
• every employee or agent of the Carrier or of a Subcontractor; and
• all persons who are or are found to be vicariously liable for the acts or omissions of any person falling within clauses 5.3(a) or 5.3(b).

• loss of the Goods;
• Damage to the Goods; or
• misdelivery, delay in delivery or non-delivery of the Goods,

whether in the course of Carriage or otherwise, unless the loss, Damage, misdelivery, delay in delivery or nondelivery was caused by the proven negligence or wilful misconduct of the Carrier.

• caused by a Force Majeure Event;
• which consist of Excluded Goods;
• caused by the Carrier following the Consignor’s instructions;
• caused by the Goods becoming infected or contaminated with any virus, bacteria, fungi, pathogen, disease, mould, vermin or like condition;
• caused by vibration, road conditions, weather or weather events of any kind whatsoever, including stone, rain, hail or storm Damage;
• caused by the Goods being inherently defective or in such a condition that the Carriage cannot be performed without Damage;
• caused by a decline in value, or loss of value as a result of the Goods becoming past their ‘use by’ or expiry date;
• where such loss or damage comprises mechanical, electrical or electronic breakdown, derangement, or malfunction of the Goods;
• caused by the inherent vice or the nature of the Goods; or
• caused by insufficiency or unsuitability of packing or preparation of the Goods to withstand the ordinary incidents of Carriage.

• loss of Goods or Damage to Goods;
• mis-delivery, delay in delivery or non-delivery of Goods,

during the provision of Carriage is limited to the sum of $5,000 for each incident.

• is not obliged to carry out any inspection of the Goods; and
• may inspect the Goods (including opening any Container) to determine the nature or condition of the Goods or for any other purpose which the Carrier considers reasonably necessary.

• deposit the Goods at the nominated place of delivery (which will be conclusively presumed to be due delivery under these conditions); or
• Store the Goods.

• the Consignor will pay or indemnify the Carrier for all costs and expenses incurred with respect to such Storage; and
• the Carrier may, at any time, redeliver the Goods to the Consignor at the Consignor’s expense.

• an address to which notices will be sent;
• samples of the signatures of persons entitled to collect the Goods; and
• an inventory of the Goods to be Stored.

• to any person other than the Consignor or a person authorised in writing by the Consignor; or
• in circumstances where any amount is due by the Consignor to the Carrier on any account whatsoever.

If the Carrier Stores Goods pursuant to clause 10, the Consignor must:

• effect and maintain an insurance policy in its own name that covers loss of or Damage to the Goods whilst the Carrier is storing those Goods with that insurance policy to include a waiver of subrogation with respect to the Carrier; and
• provide a certificate of currency in respect of the policy referred to in clause 11(a), within seven days of receiving a request from the Carrier.

Without prejudice to any other remedies the Carrier may have, if at any time the Consignor is in material breach of any obligation under any agreement incorporating these conditions (including those relating to payment), the Carrier may suspend or terminate the supply of Carriage to the Consignor.

• remove all or any of the Goods and Store them as the Carrier, acting reasonably, thinks fit at the Consignor’s risk and expense; or
• without notice and immediately in the case of perishable Goods, or otherwise on the provision of fourteen (14) days’ notice, open and sell all or any of the Goods as the Carrier thinks fit (whether by private treaty or public auction, including auction on an internet based platform) and apply the proceeds to discharge the lien and costs of sale and pay any balance to the Consignor.

• attaches to the Goods when the Goods are accepted by the Carrier for Carriage; and
• is a security interest.

• sections 95, 118, 121(4), 125, 130, 132(3)(d), 132(4), 135, 142 and 143 of the PPSA do not apply (unless the Consignor is otherwise notified in writing by the Carrier); and
• any right to receive a notice, statement or verification statement under sections 129, 130, 132, 134,135 or 157 of the PPSA is waived.

• Interest on any Outstanding Amount;
• all Storage charges and any costs associated with loading or unloading Goods;
• any fuel levy imposed, which may be adjusted by the Carrier at any time on reasonable grounds to reflect fuel price movements;
• any additional costs arising from heavy or over-dimensional transport including costs associated with permits, escorts, equipment, bridge/road works and detours and fees imposed by any Authority; and
• all charges under Law including customs charges and excises in relation to the Carriage.

• pay the Carrier’s expenses and charges to comply with any Law including any customs, excise or warehouse charges;
• supply or pay for labour or machinery, or both, to load or unload the Goods; and
• if the Goods are at any time re-quantified, re-weighed or re-measured, pay any proportional additional charges.
  
  

• such Goods must be accompanied by a written declaration disclosing the nature of such Goods; and
• the Consignor must comply with all Law that deals with the Carriage of Dangerous Goods, including the Australian Code for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road & Rail.

• in the case of Goods allegedly lost or Damaged in the course of loading, unloading or transit, within seven days from the delivery of the Goods or from the date on which in the ordinary course of business, delivery would have been effected; or
• in the case of Goods allegedly lost or Damaged during Storage, within seven days of the date of removal or attempted removal of the Goods from Storage.