Hill v. Northern Pacific Railway Co.

Citations

• 33 Wash. 697
• 74 P. 1054
• 1904 Wash. LEXIS 300

Syllabus

<p>Carriers—Limiting Liability—Contract to Carry Freight 'at Reduced Rate—Validity—Public Policy. A contract for tbe transportation of household goods providing that the “released value of this shipment is agreed to be $5.00 per 100 lbs.,” and releasing the company from any and all damages while in transit, except the result of collisions of trains or of cars being thrown from the track, limits the liability to said sum, and is not void as against public policy upon the principle that a common carrier can not relieve itself from its common law liability, where the undisputed testimony shows that the contract was entered into with the special understanding that the rate of freight was less than the ordinary rate, and would have been one and one-half times higher where there was no limitation of value placed upon the goods.</p> <p>Same—Released Value of Goods Shipped—Constructiok. In such a case the clause restricting the “released value” means the valuation to which the libility of the carrier is limited, and no distinction is to be made between a “released value” and the real valuation, upon the ground that it is arbitrarily fixed by the carrier, or is not calculated to approach the real value of the goods.</p>