Package and unit limitation
The Hague-Visby limits, the container clause, and the divergent United States figure.
Package and unit limitation caps a sea carrier’s liability for cargo loss or damage. Under Hague-Visby Article IV rule 5(a) as amended by the SDR Protocol of 21 December 1979 the limit is 666.67 units of account per package or unit, or 2 units of account per kilogram of gross weight, whichever is the higher.
The unit of account is the IMF Special Drawing Right. The unamended Hague Rules set 100 pounds sterling per package or unit, and United States COGSA 1936 sets USD 500 per package or customary freight unit, the United States having ratified neither Protocol. The limit is lost where the nature and value of the goods were declared before shipment and inserted in the bill.
The full article will cover each regime’s figure, the Article IV rule 5(c) container clause and what counts as a package, the declared value exception, the conduct that breaks the limit, and the interaction with global limitation under the LLMC.