Law on common carriers

• Common Carrier


  Person or corporation that undertakes to transport or convey goods or persons from one place to another, gratuitously (for free) OR for hire (for a fee)
• Common Carrier


  • Need not have fixed and publicly known routes
  • Need not maintain terminals or issue tickets
• Kinds of Carrier

  • Private/Special Carrier
  • Common Carrier
• Private/Special Carrier


  • One without making the activity a vocation or without holding itself out to the public
  • Transports goods or persons for free or for hire under a special agreement in a particular instance only
• Contract of Private Carriage

  Diligence of a good father of a family
• Art. 1732. Common carriers are persons, corporations, firms or associations engaged in the business of carrying or transporting passengers or goods or both, by land, water, or air, for compensation, offering their services to the public.
• Art. 1733. Common carriers, from the nature of their business and for reasons of public policy, are bound to observe extraordinary diligence in the vigilance over the goods and for the safety of the passengers transported by them, according to all the circumstances of each case.
• Art. 1755. A common carrier is bound to carry the passengers safely as far as human care and foresight can provide, using the utmost diligence of very cautious persons, with a due regard for all the circumstances.
• Art. 1756. In case of death of or injuries to passengers, common carriers are presumed to have been at fault or to have acted negligently, unless they prove that they observed extraordinary diligence as prescribed in Articles 1733 and 1755.
• The victim or their heir should only prove the existence of contract of carriage between the victim (passenger) and the common carrier.
• Art. 1757. The responsibility of a common carrier for the safety of passengers as required in Articles 1733 and 1755 cannot be dispensed with or lessened by stipulation, by the posting of notices, by statements on tickets, or otherwise.
• Art. 1759. Common carriers are liable for the death of or injuries to passengers through the negligence or willful acts of the former's employees, although such employees may have acted beyond the scope of their authority or in violation of the orders of the common carriers.
• This liability of the common carriers does not cease upon proof that they exercised all the diligence of a good father of a family in the selection and supervision of their employees.
• Gross negligence


  A conscious and voluntary disregard of the need to use reasonable care, which is likely to cause foreseeable grave injury or harm to persons, property, or both.
• Article 1759 of the Civil Code does not establish a presumption of negligence because it explicitly makes the common carrier liable in the event of death or injury to passengers due to the negligence or fault of the common carrier's employees.
• Art. 1760. The common carrier's responsibility prescribed in the preceding article cannot be eliminated or limited by stipulation, by the posting of notices, by statements on the tickets or otherwise.
• Art. 1761. The passenger must observe the diligence of a good father of a family to avoid injury to himself.
• Art. 1762. The contributory negligence of the passenger does not bar recovery of damages for his death or injuries, if the proximate cause thereof is the negligence of the common carrier, but the amount of damages shall be equitably reduced.
• When the plaintiff's own negligence was the immediate and proximate cause of his injury, he cannot recover damages. But if his negligence was only contributory, the immediate and proximate cause of the injury being the defendant's lack of due care, the plaintiff may recover damages, but the courts shall mitigate the damages to be awarded. (Art. 2178, NCC)
• Art. 1763. A common carrier is responsible for injuries suffered by a passenger on account of the willful acts or negligence of other passengers or of strangers, if the common carrier's employees through the exercise of the diligence of a good father of a family could have prevented or stopped the act or omission.
• A person who violates this duty may be liable for damages caused by his negligence.