Judgment No. SC 24/18
Civil Appeal No. SC 455/16
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
[3]
The appellant is a company registered in accordance with the laws of Zimbabwe and
carries on business from premises in Avondale, Harare.
It is an agent of the
Mediterranean Shipping Company (“Mediterranean Shipping”), a company that
operates worldwide with its core business being the carriage of containers. As agent,
appellant’s responsibility is to fulfil the obligations of Mediterranean Shipping by
facilitating delivery of containerised cargo to the clients of Mediterranean Shipping in
Zimbabwe.
[4]
In this particular instance, at the behest of Mediterranean Shipping, the appellant
supervised the movement by road of the plastic bags, which were in a container, from
the Port of Beira to Mutare Dry Port. In Mutare, the appellant instructed the employees
of the Port not to release the goods until certain monies were paid by the respondent. It
is common cause that initially the appellant refused to release the container until a sum
of money owed by the wife of one of the directors of the respondent had been paid.
Upon realising that the debt had nothing to do with the respondent, the appellant then
demanded payment of the sum of $80.50 in respect of handling charges.
The
respondent, believing the bags had been unlawfully retained by the appellant, instituted
proceedings in October 2012 for the release of the bags, damages for loss of business
and interest thereon at the prescribed rate. The sum of $80.50 was only paid in August
2013 after which the plastic bags were then retrieved.
2