Page 151 - DCOM103_COMMERCIAL_LAW

Commercial Law

Notes (3) If the buyer purchases an article under its patent or other trade name, the implied condition
that articles are fit for a particular purpose shall not apply, unless the buyer relies on the seller’s

skill and judgment and makes known to the seller that he so relies on him.

Example. B told M, a motor car dealer, that he wanted a comfortable car suitable for
touring purposes. M recommended a ‘Bugatti car’ and B thereupon bought one. The car was
uncomfortable and unsuitable for touring purposes. Held, B could reject the car and recover the
price, and the mere fact that B bought the car under its trade name did not necessarily exclude
the condition of fi tness [Baldry v. Marshall, (1925) 1 K.B. 260].
(4) In case the goods can be used for a number of purposes, the buyer must tell the seller the
particular purpose for which he requires the goods. If he does not, he cannot hold the seller liable
if the goods do not suit the particular purpose for which he buys the goods.

Example. A, a woollen merchant who was also a tailor, bought, by a sample, indigo
cloth for the purpose of making liveries. This fact was not brought to the notice of the seller. Held,
the seller was not liable when, on account of a latent defect in the cloth, the cloth was unfi t for

making liveries, but was fit for other usual purposes [Jones v. Padgett, (1890) 24 Q.B.D. 650].
4. Condition as to merchantability [Sec. 16 (2)]. Where goods are bought by description from
a seller who deals in goods of that description (whether he is the manufacturer or producer or
not), there is an implied condition that the goods are of merchantable quality. This means goods
should be such as are commercially saleable under the description by which they are known in
the market at their full value.
The term ‘merchantable’ quality is not defined in the Sale of Goods Act. But according to Sec. 62

(l-A) of the English Sale of Goods Act, 1893, “Goods of any kind are of merchantable quality if

they are as fit for the purpose or purposes for which goods of that kind are commonly bought as
it is reasonable to expect having regard to any description applied to them, the price (if relevant)
and all the other relevant circumstances.”

Example: A firm of Liverpool merchants contracted to buy from a London merchant a

number of bales of Manilla hemp to arrive from Singapore. The hemp was damaged by sea water
in such a way that it would not pass in the market as Manilla hemp. Held, the goods were not of
merchantable quality [Jones v. Just, (1868) L.R. 3 Q.B. 197].
If goods are of such a quality and in such a condition that a reasonable person acting reasonably
would accept them after having examined thoroughly, they are of merchantable quality. Thus a
watch that will not keep time, a pen that will not write, and tobacco that will not smoke, cannot
be regarded as merchantable under such names.

Example: (a) A manufacturer supplied 600 horns under a contract. The horns were found
to be dented, scratched and otherwise of faulty manufacture. Held, they were not of merchantable
quality and therefore the seller’s suit for price WpS dismissed [Jackson v. Rutax Motor & Cycle Co.,
(1910) 2 K.B. 397].
(b) There was a sale by a grocer of tinned salmon which was poisonous. It resulted in the death
of the wife of the buyer. Held, the buyer could recover damages including a sum to compensate
him for being compelled to hire services which were rendered by his wife [Jackson v. Watson &
Sons, (1909) 9 K.B. 193 c.A.].

(c) P sold a plastic catapult to G, a boy of six. While G was using it in the proper manner, the
catapult broke due to the fact that ti1e material used in its manufacture was unsuitable. As a

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