Legal Definitions - vectura

Vectura is a historical term from maritime law that refers to the payment made for the transportation of goods by sea. It essentially means freight, encompassing either the charge for carrying cargo or, less commonly, the cargo itself when it is the subject of transport.

Here are some examples to illustrate the concept of vectura:

• Imagine a merchant in the 16th century who needed to transport a valuable shipment of spices from India to Portugal. He would contract with a ship owner for this service. The agreed-upon sum of money paid to the ship owner for carrying these spices across the ocean would be considered the vectura.

  This example demonstrates vectura as the direct payment for the shipping service, a common form of freight charge.

• Consider a scenario where a ship captain agreed to transport a large quantity of wine barrels from France to England. Instead of a monetary payment, the agreement stipulated that the captain would receive a certain number of barrels of wine upon safe delivery as compensation for his services.

  In this instance, the portion of the wine cargo received by the captain as payment for its transport represents the vectura, illustrating how freight could sometimes be paid in goods rather than currency.

• During a period of active trade, a legal dispute arose between a shipper and a vessel owner regarding the cost of transporting a load of timber across the Baltic Sea. The shipper claimed he was overcharged, while the vessel owner insisted the agreed rate was fair.

  The core of their legal argument revolved around the correct amount of vectura—the freight charge—that should have been applied for the timber's journey.