Marwaha v Director of Border Revenue & Anor [2025] EWHC 869 (KB) (10 April 2025)

Marwaha v Director of Border Revenue & Anor [2025] EWHC 869 (KB) (10 April 2025)

The acceptance by the claimant of the statutory compensation determined by the independent referee under paragraph 17(1)(c) of Schedule 3 to the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, for goods destroyed by the defendants, extinguished any further right to maintain an action for damages relating to the destruction...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
[2025] EWHC 869 (KB)
Parties
Claimant: Rajan Marwaha (a bankrupt); First Defendant: Director of Border Revenue; Second Defendant: UK Border Agency
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
10 April 2025
Procedural Posture
High Court Civil Claim (king's Bench Division) / Final Judgment After Trial
Outcome
Claim dismissed
Legal Topics
Destruction of Property by Customs Authorities, Statutory Compensation Schemes, Estoppel by Convention, Interpretation of Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, Limitation of Actions, Consequential Loss Claims, Effect of Statutory Finality Clauses
Customs and Excise Law Tort Law Public Law Destruction of Property by Customs Authorities Statutory Compensation Schemes Estoppel by Convention Interpretation of Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 Limitation of Actions +2 more

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Parties

Rajan Marwaha (a bankrupt)

Claimant

Director of Border Revenue

First Defendant

UK Border Agency

Second Defendant

Procedural Posture

High Court Civil Claim (king's Bench Division) / Final Judgment After Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Does acceptance of statutory compensation under paragraph 17 of Schedule 3 to the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 bar further claims for damages?
  2. 2 Were the goods destroyed 'under paragraph 16' for the purposes of the statutory scheme?
  3. 3 Does a reservation of rights by the claimant when accepting statutory compensation preserve a right to further damages?

Ratio Decidendi

The acceptance by the claimant of the statutory compensation determined by the independent referee under paragraph 17(1)(c) of Schedule 3 to the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, for goods destroyed by the defendants, extinguished any further right to maintain an action for damages relating to the destruction of those goods, regardless of any reservation of rights by the claimant. The statutory bar applies to both the commencement and continuation of actions. The statutory scheme is intended to be final and exclusive, and consequential losses are not recoverable beyond the market value determined under the scheme.

Court Disposition

Claim dismissed

Orders

  • The claim is dismissed in its entirety.
  • No further damages are payable beyond the statutory compensation already paid.