Section 8 of The Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993
Multimodal transport document to be regarded as document of title.
- (1)Every consignee named in the negotiable or non-negotiable multimodal transport document and every endorsee of such document, as the case may be, to whom the property in the goods mentioned therein shall pass, upon or by reason of such consignment or endorsement, shall have all the rights and liabilities of the consignor.
- (2)Nothing contained in sub-section (1) shall prejudice or affect the right of the multimodal transport operator to claim freight from the consignor or enforce any liability of the consignee or endorsee by reason of his being such consignee or endorsee.
Summary
- The legal receiver named in the document, or the person who receives the document through endorsement, gets all the rights of the original sender.
- Along with these rights, the receiver also takes on all the legal liabilities of the original sender once ownership of the goods passes to them.
- This transfer of rights and liabilities does not stop the transport operator from demanding the shipping charges from the original sender.
- The operator can still hold the receiver or endorsee liable for their specific duties under their status as receiver or endorsee.
Practical examples
FAQ
1. Who gets the rights and liabilities of the sender under this section?
The named receiver (consignee) or the person to whom the negotiable document is transferred (endorsee), provided the ownership of the goods passes to them.
2. Does the transport operator lose the right to collect shipping charges from the sender once rights transfer?
No, the transport operator's right to claim the freight (shipping charges) from the original sender remains completely unaffected.
3. What happens to the receiver's own liabilities when they acquire the sender's rights?
The transport operator can still enforce any liability against the receiver or endorsee that arises from them being the named receiver or document holder.
Test yourself
1.Under Section 8 of The Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993, when a named consignee or endorsee acquires ownership of the goods, what is the legal result?
2.Under Section 8 of The Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993, how does the transfer of rights to a receiver affect the operator's right to collect shipping fees?
3.Under Section 8 of The Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993, who can hold the rights and liabilities of the consignor?
4.Under Section 8 of The Multimodal Transportation of Goods Act, 1993, can the transport operator enforce liabilities against a receiver who has taken title to the goods?