STOURNARAS STYLIANOS MONOPROSOPI EPE V MAERSK A/S

[2024] EWHC 2494 (Comm), King's Bench Division, Commercial Court, Lionel Persey KC sitting as a High Court Judge, 7 October 2024

Contracts (bills of lading) – Straight bills – Weighing and verification of weight of container – Verified gross mass – Carrier issuing bills of lading based on shipper's declared weight – Significant discrepancy compared to VGM – Carrier's reliance on shipper's representation – Whether bills ought to have been claused – Whether negligent misstatement – Whether carrier had a duty of care – International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea ("SOLAS") – Resolution MSC.380 (94) – Hague Rules, article III rule 3(c)

The claimant S had purchased three consignments of copper from a seller who had subsequently vanished.