Caselaw Digest
Caselaw Digest

Tornado Wire Limited v John Good Logistics Limited

2 February 2024
[2024] EWHC 212 (KB)
High Court
A company hired another to handle their import paperwork. The paperwork was wrong, costing the company a lot of money. The second company tried to get the case dismissed saying it was too late to sue. The judge said the rules were unfair in this situation and the case should go ahead.

Key Facts

  • •Tornado Wire Limited (Claimant) sued John Good Logistics Limited (Defendant) for damages (£953,616.29) due to breach of contract and/or negligence.
  • •The Defendant acted as the Claimant's customs agent, handling import declarations for steel products.
  • •Due to errors by the Defendant, the Claimant incurred import duties.
  • •The Defendant applied for summary judgment, arguing the claim was time-barred under clause 27(B) of their standard terms and conditions (BIFA STC 2017).
  • •The Claimant argued the time bar was unreasonable under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (UCTA).

Legal Principles

Summary judgment principles (realistic prospect of success, no mini-trial, consideration of evidence available at trial)

Easyair Ltd v Opal Telecom Ltd [2009] EWHC 339 (Ch)

Contractual interpretation (objective meaning, consideration of the contract as a whole, context)

Wood v Capita [2017] UKSC 24

Reasonableness test under UCTA (fair and reasonable, considering bargaining positions, inducement, knowledge of terms, practicality of compliance)

Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, sections 11(1), 11(5), Schedule 2

Outcomes

Defendant's application for summary judgment dismissed.

The court found a realistic prospect of success for the Claimant on the issue of whether clause 27(B)'s nine-month time bar was unreasonable under UCTA, considering the circumstances and lack of equal bargaining power. The court acknowledged that while the BIFA terms were widely used, each case required individual assessment of reasonableness. The delay in HMRC notification and the potential for significant losses were key factors.

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