Southern Nursery Co. v. Winfield Nursery Co.

Citations

• 89 Kan. 522
• 132 P. 149

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>Interstate Shipment — Undervaluation to Obtain Lower Rate — ■ Limitation of Carrier’s Liability. A nursery company in Tennessee filled an order for a carload of nursery stock from a dealer in Kansas. In the absence of special instructions to the contrary, and under a custom understood and agreed upon by nurserymen, the shipment was undervalued to obtain a lower freight rate, under a classification permitting it, and a bill of lading was taken which limited the liability of the carrier accordingly. Some of the goods were injured by freezing while in transit, and upon arrival at their destination they were rejected. In an action for the price of the entire shipment, Held:</p> <p>(1)-- Seller Authorized to Follow Trade Custom in Billing Goods — Carrier Agent of Buyer. The seller was authorized, in the absence of special instructions to the contrary, to ship in the usual and ordinary way. His authority extended no further than to take a bill of lading of the kind usual in such shipments, and the carrier did not become his agent to make delivery instead of the agent of the buyer because the liability preserved against the carrier by the bill of lading was not sufficient to meet the loss sustained.</p> <p>(2)- Validity■ of Contract Limiting Liability of Carrier. The shipment being interstate in character was governed by the federal law, and under the federal statutes and decisions an interstate carrier may by fair, open and reasonable agreement limit the amount recoverable by a shipper to an agreed value, understated for the purpose of obtaining the lower of two or more rates, proportioned to the amount of risk.</p>