“Therefore, plaintiff cannot recover for any damages sustained as a result of the alleged lost package of rare coins.” —Land, District Judge 

Facts: Billy Rykard allegedly shipped rare coins from Midland, Georgia, to Columbia Collectibles, LTD (Columbia) located in Patchogue, New York, by FedEx Ground Package System, Inc. (FedEx). Rykard had packaged and taped the shipment in a DHL box (DHL is a competitor shipper to FedEx) instead of a FedEx package and did not notify FedEx that that the package contained rare coins. When the coins were not received by Columbia, Rykard sued FedEx to recover damages. FedEx asserted two defenses. First, the tariff contract stated that a shipper was prohibited from shipping money, cash, currency, or rare coins and that FedEx would not be liable for the loss of such items. Second, the contract also stated that FedEx would not be liable for losses attributable to improper packaging, marking, and labeling of shipments. 

Issue: Is FedEx liable to Rykard for loss of the coins? 

Language of the Court: In this case, plaintiff Rykard attempted to ship a prohibited item without disclosing the shipment contents to FedEx. Plaintiff also improperly packaged the shipment in a DHL box. By these actions, plaintiff violated the terms of the liability limitations in the tariff. Therefore, plaintiff cannot recover for any damages sustained as a result of the alleged lost package of rare coins. 

Decision: The U.S. district court held that FedEx was not liable for the alleged loss of the rare coins.

Ethics Questions: Should Rykard expect FedEx to be liable for the alleged loss of valuable rare coins when FedEx did not know what was contained in the package? Is it ethical for FedEx to limit its liability?