Post Office (Parcels) Act, 1882

• Permanent Page URL

THIRD SCHEDULE.

Sect. 6 .

Apportionment among the Railway Companies.

1. All sums paid by the Postmaster-General under this Act to the railway companies parties to the arrangements under this Act shall be apportioned amongst the railway companies entitled to share therein by the London Railway Clearing Committee half-yearly up to the thirtieth day of June and the thirty-first day of December in each year, or to such other half-yearly days as the parcels accounts between the companies may for the time being be made up by the London Railway Clearing Committee.

2. The share of each railway company shall bear the same ratio to the whole sum divisible as that company's gross receipts from local and through parcels traffic for each half-yearly period bear to the gross receipts from local and through parcels traffic of all the companies for the same period: Provided that where upon an arbitration with any company not a party to the arrangement under this Act any sum is awarded to be paid to such company, such sum shall be so paid of the share ascertained as aforesaid.

Each company shall render to the London Railway Clearing Committee the necessary returns of their parcels traffic certified by their accountant, such returns to be subject to audit and inspection of books by the London Railway Clearing Committee.

3. If at any time after the expiration of three years from the passing of this Act, or if at any time in pursuance of regulations of the Treasury the weights or rates of postage for parcels differ from those mentioned in the Second Schedule to this Act, any one or more of the companies consider that the apportionment of the receipts from parcels traffic above provided by this Act (herein-after called “the prescribed apportionment”) is inequitable, such company or companies (without prejudice to any right conferred by this Act on a company not represented by the committee) may forward to the London Railway Clearing Committee a statement in writing of the grounds of objection to the prescribed apportionment, and thereupon the following provisions shall have effect:

(a.) The secretary to the London Railway Clearing Committee shall convene a special meeting of the general managers of the railway companies parties to the arrangement under this Act (herein-after called “the conference”) for the purpose of taking such statement into consideration, and shall give not less than fourteen days’ notice of such special meeting.

(b.) The conference shall at such special meeting take the said statement into consideration and determine by a majority of its members present at such meeting whether a primâ facie case has been shown for altering the prescribed apportionment.

(c.) If the conference determine that a primâ facie case has not been shown for altering the prescribed apportionment no further proceedings shall be taken, and the prescribed apportionment shall continue in force until further complaint be made under this article.

(d.) If the conference determine that a primâ facie case has been shown for altering the prescribed apportionment, it shall proceed either at such meeting or any adjournment or adjournments thereof, or at any other meeting specially convened for the purpose as herein-before provided, to consider a fair and equitable revision of the prescribed apportionment.

(e.) The conference may by a majority of its members present at any such meeting and representing companies whose aggregate share capital is for the time being not less than three-fourths of the aggregate share capital represented at such meeting determine upon a revision of the prescribed apportionment.

(f.) If the conference, for the space of three months after they have decided that a primâ facie case for revision has been shown, fail to determine by the requisite majority upon a revision of the prescribed apportionment, then the question of revising the prescribed apportionment shall be referred to an arbitrator appointed under this schedule, who shall have power to determine whether any, and if any, what revision of the prescribed apportionment is required to remedy any inequality or injustice which may in his opinion be established upon due inquiry before him.

(g.) The conference or the arbitrator shall, in considering a revision of the prescribed apportionment, have power to deal with any complaint of inequality or injustice which may be submitted to them or him by any of the companies, and may adopt in revising the prescribed apportionment such basis of division or such data as to them or him shall seem just.

(h.) Any decision of the conference or of the arbitrator shall be final and conclusive upon the companies, and shall, unless any further alteration is made in the weights and rates of postage of the parcels in pursuance of regulations of the Treasury, continue in force for the period of three years and thereafter until any further complaint shall be made under this enactment.

(i.) The selection by the Postmaster-General of any route or routes for the transmission of parcels in preference to any competing route or routes shall in no case be a reason for revising the prescribed apportionment.

4. Parcels traffic for the purposes of the apportionment shall (unless and till otherwise determined by the conference, who shall have power to add to or take from the following list of excepted articles) include all such traffic as according to the practice for the time being of the London Railway Clearing Committee is included in that expression, except—

Mails, other than parcels; fish, meat, and poultry for markets; milk; carriages; cattle, horses, dogs, and other animals; corpses; and specie.

5. The conference shall have power from time to time to make and, if necessary, to revoke and alter all such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the purpose of giving full effect to this Act with respect to—

(a.) The forms to be used by the companies in dealing with parcels traffic as above defined;

(b.) The returns to be made by the companies for the purposes of this Act;

(c.) The verification of any such returns; and

(d.) Any matters of detail necessary or proper for carrying this schedule into effect;

and all such rules and regulations shall be binding on the companies.

6. The arbitrator to determine any question between the companies under the provisions of this schedule shall be appointed when such question arises by the Lord Chief Justice of England, on the application of the London Railway Clearing Committee, and the Railway Companies Arbitration Act, 1859, shall apply to any such arbitration.