The Road Transport Act or the Maritime Code for combined transport
Supreme Court judgment 14 May 2019, HR-2019-912-A, (case no. 18-154904SIV-HRET), civil case, appeal against judgment dom.
I. Kuehne + Nagel AS (Counsel Yngve von Ahnen) v.Axa Corporate Solutions, Nexans Norway AS, CNA Insurance Company Ltd (Counsel Trond Hatland)
II. Gjensidige Forsikring ASA, Pentagon Freight Services AS (Counsel Frithjof Herlofsen) v. Kuehne + Nagel AS (Counsel Yngve von Ahnen)
A transportation firm had been commissioned to carry goods from Norway to England. The carriage was to take place partially by road in both countries and partially by sea between the countries. The goods were damaged beyond repair during the sea carriage. The Supreme Court held that the transport assignment judged as a whole had the characteristics of carriage of goods by road, so that the Road Transport Act as a starting point was applicable in the decision of the liability issue. The Supreme Court found nevertheless, unlike the court of appeal, that the exception in section 4 subsection 2 of the Road Transport Act was applicable, with the effect that the liability issue was regulated by the provisions of the Maritime Code. It was held that it was not the road carrier's inadequate securing of the load to the trailer, where it was placed also during the sea carriage, that caused the damage, but the sea carrier's inadequate securing of the load. The damage had thus occurred because of an event that could only take place during and because of the sea carriage.