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Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017

Other commercial matters - Power for shipowner to enter and land goods, and lien for freight

334: Right of wharf owner or warehouse owner, if no notice is given, to pay deposit to shipowner

You could also call this:

“Wharf or warehouse owner can give deposit to shipowner if not told otherwise”

If someone leaves goods at your wharf or warehouse, they might make a deposit. This deposit is meant for the shipowner. You can keep this deposit for 15 days. If the person who left the goods doesn’t tell you in writing to keep the money within those 15 days, you can give the deposit to the shipowner.

If the person does write to you within the 15 days, they need to say one of two things. They either need to tell you how much money they think they owe the shipowner, or they need to say they don’t think they owe the shipowner any money at all.

If you give the deposit to the shipowner after the 15 days (when you haven’t received a written notice), you won’t get in trouble. The law says you’ve done the right thing by following these rules.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM6844742.

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333: Discharge of lien on deposit with warehouse owner, or

"How to remove a shipowner's claim on your goods by paying money to a warehouse"

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335: Course to be taken if notice to retain is given, or

"What happens when you want to keep your goods at a wharf or warehouse"

Part 5 Other commercial matters
Power for shipowner to enter and land goods, and lien for freight

334Right of wharf owner or warehouse owner, if no notice is given, to pay deposit to shipowner

  1. A wharf owner or a warehouse owner (A) with whom a deposit is made under section 333 may, at the expiry of 15 days after the deposit is made, pay the deposited sum to the shipowner if the owner who made the deposit (B) does not within that 15-day period give to A a written notice to retain it.

  2. The notice from B must state—

  3. the sum (if any) that B admits is payable to the shipowner; or
    1. that B does not admit any sum is payable to the shipowner.

      1. A is discharged from all liability in respect of the deposit by making the payment in accordance with this section.

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