In its judgement of February 1, 2008 regarding the NDS PROVIDER the Supreme Court of the Netherlands held that the purpose of the duty of care of the carrier set out in Art.III r.1 H(V)R is that a vessel should protect the cargo from the dangers of the sea, so that it is suitable to carry cargo. This is also referred to as “cargoworthiness” of the Vessel. This means that the carrier should also ensure that containers that have been provided by him specially for carriage on board of the vessel should also be suitable to carry the cargo that has been placed into those containers. This duty of care entails that, in the same manner as with the holds of a vessel, it should not be possible for water to enter those containers. A more detailed discussion of the Supreme Court of the Netherland’s judgment regarding the NDS PROVIDER can be downloaded here.