imported stock held in warehouse - stock was stolen - who do i sue or claim against - owner is shirking all responsibility

[Juno50]

I am looking for some advice.

 I recently imported stock and it was held in a warehouse until the courier could collect.  

The stock was stolen from the warehouse and the owner is saying he is not responsible for any compensation for the loss.

 It is a large business that has been operating for over 30 years, would he have to have umbrella insurance to cover any stock theft or loss?  

I was paying him for the service to store the stock. 

what are my chances of claiming the loss from his insurance cover?

Any help would be much appreciated. 

[Ethel Street]

You can't claim anything from his insurance and it isn't relevant what insurance he has. Unless the contract specifically states he is going to arrange insurance on your behalf.

What matters is the terms of the contract you had with the warehouse owner and what it says about who is responsible if the goods are stolen.

Please post up the contract as a single pdf with all identifying details covered up   

 

[Juno50]

The company that handles my imports booked the goods into storage with the owner of the warehouse.

He was paid for the service.  

Surely if he is holding and storing goods he would have to have some sort of umbrella insurance for theft fire etc etc.

at no stage was I advised to insure the goods whilst in storage, I had the insurance for transporting them to my warehouse and insurance set up on arrival in my warehouse. 

Why would he not be liable to claim from his insurance? 

[Ethel Street]

Post up the contract please.

In B2B agreements the parties can make pretty much any agreement they like about who is responsible for loss or damage to goods and who has to insure them. 

Debating it without knowing what the contract says won't get us very far.

You are running an import business so it isn't anyone else's responsibility to tell you what you have to insure. It was up to you to take professional advice on what you had to insure. And the first thing a professional insurance adviser would have asked you is what the contract said. 

And it is also relevant to know on what basis you bought the goods from your overseas supplier. Did they insure them? Until delivery to you or just until delivery to warehouse? 

[Juno50]

I will try and get a copy of the contract, it was between my landing agent here and the warehouse owner.  The goods were their responsibility until collected by myself 

[Manxman in exile]

So you don't have a contract with the warehouse?  Your intermediary does?

[Juno50]

The import agent who was acting my behalf arranged the storage and all the contract details. 

[Manxman in exile]

Perhaps you ought to check what the T&Cs of your agreement with your import agent say?  And ask your agent what he arranged on your behalf with the warehouse?

Depending on whether you're a business and on the value of the stock, you might want to seek paid for professional legal advice.  If you are a business you are basically free to agree to whatever contractual terms you like, and you are expected to be capable of looking after your own interests. You don't have the benefit of consumer law to protect you.

[Juno50]

I am not a business but I’ll ask about the contract 

[theberengersniper]

I'll ask the silly question because it seems like it might be relevant: you say you're not a business, yet you're importing 'stock'. How does that work?

[Juno50]

I was operating as a sole trader and bringing my stock over from South Africa 

[Manxman in exile]

So this WAS a business transaction and you are not a consumer?

If you are "in business" I'd suggest you seek legal advice - depending on the value of the loss, of course.

Otherwise you need to examine the T&Cs of both your agreement with your agent and his agreement with the warehouse...

 

[Edit - just for illustration, this is the definition of "consumer" in the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (legislation.gov.uk)

“Consumer” means an individual acting for purposes that are wholly or mainly outside that individual’s trade, business, craft or profession ]

Edited May 26, 2023 by Manxman in exile

[Ethel Street]

@Juno50 It's what Manxman says in Post #8. 

You were importing goods from S Africa to resell for profit - they weren't for your personal use - so you are in business and consumer law does not protect you. It's irrelevant that you were importing as a sole trader not a Ltd company. Sole traders are trading as a business.  And your business is large enough for you to have your own warehouse as you say in Post #3 "I had the insurance for transporting them to my warehouse and insurance set up on arrival in my warehouse ".

Potentially any of the parties involved could have agreed to insure the stock while it was in the warehouse. You, your import agent, or the warehouse operator. Only the contracts you have with them will tell you which of them was responsible if the stock was stolen from the warehouse. In business-to-business transactions there is no presumption that the warehouse operator is always liable if stock is stolen from his warehouse. Only if the contract says he is.

So there isn't any more advice we can give you until we see the contracts. You may need to get professional legal advice if the contracts are not clear.

Approximately what is the value of the stolen goods?

[stu007]

Hi

Could I also ask has the Agent acting on your behalf or yourself clarified with this warehouse that the goods that were supposedly stolen from that warehouse has been reported as theft of these goods to the Police and they have a Crime Reference Number which I am sure any Insurance Company would ask for.

 

[Juno50]

Yes there is a reference number