Transport law & compensation for damages by the recipient
October 27, 2010 | 40,00 EUR | answered by Dr. Dr. Danjel-Philippe Newerla
Person A is the owner of a device that he purchased from company B. Since it is in need of repair, he sends the device to B with the help of supplier C so that B can provide a cost estimate (warranty period has expired). After some time (several weeks), A learns from B that the device had damage (glass shattered) when the package arrived at B (damage was only visible after opening the package according to his statement; B claims it was a transportation damage due to poor packaging). However, A no longer has the opportunity to claim the damage from C, as the 7 (?) day deadline for reporting non-external damage has passed. Additionally, the packaging cannot be inspected after this time and therefore A cannot be potentially relieved or C burdened.
Now my questions:
Can A claim damages against B (§?) because they did not report the damage to C or to A? A can no longer claim and have the damage assessed against C and determine who is responsible for the damage and costs.
Or is there another possibility?
If my indicated price is not acceptable, please contact me regarding this matter.
Dear inquirer,
Thank you for your inquiry, which I would like to answer as follows:
Unfortunately, this problem occurs relatively frequently in practice and causes trouble.
From the fact that, according to your description, B can no longer assert any claims against C, I deduce that C was commissioned by B to pick up the goods.
Therefore, B would indeed have had a claim under the transport contract according to § 425 HGB or under general civil law for breach of duty according to § 280 BGB.
Whether the time limit of seven days claimed by B is valid, I cannot definitively assess in a remote initial consultation and therefore assume it for now.
If the situation was as described by B, A would have fulfilled his obligation by handing over the goods properly and in a demonstrably defect-free condition (witnesses may be necessary in this case!) to C.
If this is the case, A could assert claims for damages against B, as B commissioned C and negligently failed to pass on warranty claims.
I would like to finally draw your attention to the following:
The legal advice I provided is based solely on the information you provided. My response is only an initial legal assessment of the situation and cannot replace a comprehensive examination of the facts. Adding or omitting relevant information can lead to a completely different legal assessment.
I hope my explanations have helped you. You are welcome to contact me via my email address or the option for further inquiries.
I wish you a pleasant Wednesday afternoon!
Kind regards from the North Sea coast
Dipl.-Jur. Danjel-Philippe Newerla, Attorney at Law
Stresemannstr. 46
27570 Bremerhaven
kanzlei.newerla@web.de
Tel. 0471/140240
Fax.0471/140244
