CARRIERS

I.     DEFINITIONS.

A carrier is a person or company that undertakes, or is in the business of transporting persons or merchandise for hire. Carriers are of two kinds, private and common.

        A.     PRIVATE CARRIER.

A private carrier is one who carries only occasionally, and not as a public business.
A private carrier is usually an individual who, without being engaged in such business as a public employment, carries merchandise from one point to another for a consideration. He is bound to exercise such care of the property as a man of ordinary intelligence would his own property.

        B.     COMMON CARRIER

A common carrier is one whose regular business is carrying goods or passengers from place to place for all persons who choose to employ the service. Common carriers hold themselves out to carry goods or passengers from one place to another, for all persons who offer to employ them. Examples of common carriers are bus service companies, taxicab companies, and express delivery companies.

                1.     BILL OF LADING

A bill of lading is the receipt given by the common carrier to the owner of the goods being shipped. It should contain a description of (a) the quantity, (b) the marks on the merchandise, (c) the names of the shipper or the person sending the goods, the consignee, and the person to whom the goods are shipped, (d) the place of departure and place of discharge of the goods, (e) the price of freight, and (f) the weight of the separate packages and the number of the car in which the same were shipped.

                2.     DUTY OF CARE.

1. At common law. common carriers were bound to carry all goods that are offered them, provided such goods come within the class of articles they hold themselves out to carry. THE DUTIES MAY BE EXPRESS IN CIVIL RIGHTS STATUTES AND PUBLIC ACCOMMODATION LAWS.
   
   
2. Common carriers are generally responsible for all loss and damage caused by transportation from whatever cause, except the act of God, civil strife or hostile enemy.
   
   
3. The carrier is not responsible for losses occurring from natural causes, such as frosts, fermentation, or natural decay of perishable articles, or the necessary and natural wear in the course of transportation, provided the carrier exercises all reasonable care to keep the loss or deterioration as minimal as practical.
   
   
4. At common law the carrier is liable for any and all loss occasioned by accidental fire.
   
   
5. Carriers are not responsible for loss to fruits that decay in their possession through no fault of theirs or for goods shipped in defective boxes, such as glassware and other easily broken articles that are not properly packed. Goods must be properly packed in order to make the carrier responsible.
   
   
6. Duty of care towards baggage. In the transportation of the baggage of passengers the liability of the carrier for loss to the same is the same as in the case of transportation of goods for hire, and in case of loss the carrier must make it good.

                3.     WHEN LIABILITY BEGINS AND ENDS.

The responsibility of the common carrier begins upon the delivery of the goods for immediate transportation. A delivery at the usual place of receiving freight or to the employee of the company in the usual course of business is sufficient. The responsibility of the carrier as such terminates after the arrival of the goods at their destination and sufficient time has elapsed thereafter for the owner to have received them during business hours. After the expiration of such time the responsibility of the carrier is simply that of a warehouseman and he is required only to keep the goods with ordinary care.

                4.     LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.

A carrier can limit its liability by contract, unless forbidden by statute. Thus a statement limiting the amount of a carrier's liability may be put on a bill of lading given as a receipt for a freight or express shipment, or on a receipt for a freight or express shipment, or on a receipt given a passenger for the passenger's baggage. Such statement is considered binding by the courts and relieves the carrier of additional liability. The general rule is that a carrier may relieve itself from all liability except for loss or damage caused by its own negligence.

                5.     THE PASSENGER's RIGHTS.

The law requires common carriers to carry all passengers who pay the required fare and who are in a sufficiently intelligent condition to travel. The carrier must exercise great care in transporting passengers and is liable for injury due to the carrier's negligence. If the passenger was negligent and contributed to his or her own injury, as a generally rule, the passenger cannot hold the carrier liable.

                6.     DIFFERENT CARRIER LINES.
Where goods are accepted for shipment to points beyond the line of the carrier to, whom they are first delivered, such carrier is responsible for the delivery of the goods at their destination. The law usually provides that under such circumstances the carrier shall be liable for any loss or injury occurring during the shipment, whether on its own line or on that of the connecting carrier.

                7.     DEMURRAGE.

This is the sum charged by transportation companies for goods not removed from their cars within the time fixed by the rules of the companies. The rules of a large number of railroad and trucking companies often require that the cars be unloaded within twenty-four hours after the cargo's arrival at the destination. A fixed rate of demurrage for each twenty-four hours of delay after the expiration of the usual time for unloading is imposed on the persons to whom goods are shipped.

                8.     THE CARRIER'S RIGHTS.

The carrier is entitled to a reasonable compensation for its services, and may demand payment in advance. The shipper is liable for freight, unless the carrier agrees to look exclusively to some other party. After delivery the carrier may recover the amount of freight from the-consignee. But freight may be collected only for the goods actually delivered, unless the delivery be prevented by the owner or unless it be agreed that freight shall be payable regardless of losses by the way. The carrier also has a lien on the goods for his freight and advances on such goods, and may refuse to deliver until such charges be paid. This lien has priority over the owner's right of stoppage in transit and the claims of the general creditors of the owner or consignee. A carrier by water also has a lien for salvage and for customs duties advanced on imported goods.

        C.     COMMUNICATIONS COMMON CARRIERS.

Traditionally local telephone companies have been treated as common carriers and their rates are subject to some state regulation. Long distance telephone service rates are generally reviewed by the Federal Communications Commission. However, this is an area of rapid change and emerging competition and deregulation.

FOR OREGON TELEPHONE REGULATION SEE ORS CH 759.

The law pertaining to internet access providers, electronic bulletin boards and similar communication systems is in flux.