鹿特丹規則對海上貨物運送交付遲延責任及貨損理賠之分析

THE LIABILITY OF DELAY IN DELIVERY AND THE ANALYSIS OF ITS APPLICATION IN THE ROTTERDAM RULES IN MARINE CARGO CLAIMS

海上貨物運送乃國際貿易之重要環節，若未能於契約所定時間及地點為貨物之交付，即構成海上貨物交付遲延之責任。國際海上貨物運送主要受1924年海牙規則、1968年海牙威斯比規則、1978年漢堡規則或1980年聯合國多式聯運公約等國際公約之規範。本文主要探討貨物交付遲延責任之本質，比較各國際海運公約，包含最新2009年鹿特丹規則之規範，探討貨物交付遲延責任於國際發展之最新趨勢。本文研究發現，於航運發展趨勢與各國利益權衡下，運送人對貨物交付遲延責任之規範，在國際海運公約規範中缺乏統一性，一般海上貨物航程保險又將遲延責任排除於承保範圍，如此不僅影響託運人亦將損及受貨人或載貨證券持有人之利益。對運送人貨物交付遲延之責任，我國海商法規定不足，須適用民法相關規定。有鑒於航運發展趨勢與鹿特丹規則之制定，本文針對海商法提出貨物交付遲延責任之修正建議，研究成果可供我國未來修法之參考。

The carriage of goods by sea is an important part of the international trade. If goods are not delivered at the time and place as agreed, freight companies are held liable for the delay in delivery. International seaborne trade is mainly governed by the Hague Rules (1924), the Hague-Visby Rules (1968), the Hamburg Rules (1978), or the United Nations Convention on International Multimodal Transport of Goods (1980). This article mainly explores the nature of the responsibility of delay in delivery, compares the international maritime conventions (incl., the latest Rotterdam Rules of 2009), and examines the latest international trends of the liability for delay in delivery. This study showed that under the balance of shipping developing trend and national interests, the norm of carrier’s liability for delay in delivery lacks uniformity in the international maritime convention, and the coverage of general voyage policy excludes the liability of delay. These negative aspects not only affect shippers, but also damage the interest of consignees or bills of lading holders. The regulation of Taiwanese Maritime Law about the liability for delay in delivery is insufficient, and thus applications from the Civil Law are required. In view of the developing shipping trend and the formulation of the Rotterdam Rules, this paper proposed amendment to the liability for delay in delivery in Maritime Law. The research results can be provided as a favorable reference for amending the law.