§ 34.1-7-301 — Liability for nonreceipt or misdescription; "said to contain"; "shipper's weight, load, and count"; improper handling

(a) A consignee of a nonnegotiable bill of lading which
has given value in good faith, or a holder to which a negotiable
bill has been duly negotiated, relying upon the description of
the goods in the bill or upon the date shown in the bill, may
recover from the issuer damages caused by the misdating of the
bill or the nonreceipt or misdescription of the goods, except to
the extent that the bill indicates that the issuer does not know
whether any part or all of the goods in fact were received or
conform to the description, such as in a case in which the
description is in terms of marks or labels or kind, quantity, or
condition or the receipt or description is qualified by
"contents or condition of contents of packages unknown," "said
to contain," "shipper's weight, load, and count," or words of
similar import, if that indication is true.
(b) If goods are loaded by the issuer of a bill of lading:
(i) The issuer shall count the packages of goods if
shipped in packages and ascertain the kind and quantity if
shipped in bulk; and
(ii) Words such as "shipper's weight, load, and
count," or words of similar import indicating that the
description was made by the shipper are ineffective except as to
goods concealed in packages.
(c) If bulk goods are loaded by a shipper that makes
available to the issuer of a bill of lading adequate facilities
for weighing those goods, the issuer shall ascertain the kind
and quantity within a reasonable time after receiving the
shipper's request in a record to do so. In that case,
"shipper's weight" or words of similar import are ineffective.
(d) The issuer of a bill of lading, by including in the
bill the words "shipper's weight, load, and count," or words of
similar import, may indicate that the goods were loaded by the
shipper, and, if that statement is true, the issuer is not
liable for damages caused by the improper loading. However,
omission of such words does not imply liability for damages
caused by improper loading.
(e) A shipper guarantees to an issuer the accuracy at the
time of shipment of the description, marks, labels, number,
kind, quantity, condition, and weight, as furnished by the
shipper, and the shipper shall indemnify the issuer against
damage caused by inaccuracies in those particulars. This right
of indemnity does not limit the issuer's responsibility or
liability under the contract of carriage to any person other
than the shipper.