220. Contract or tort

If goods are lost, damaged or delayed during carriage, action may be brought against the carrier based in contract or in tort. In the present state of English law, although liability is concurrent in tort and contract,1 the extent of the carrier’s liability in tort is unlikely to be greater than the carrier’s liability in contract.2 There is a difference, however, as regards the limitation of actions.3 In any event, the carrier’s primary liability is in contract, so consideration of that comes first in this chapter4 followed by consideration of the carrier’s liability in tort5 and, after that some issues common to both contract and tort.6