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Definition
Common carriers are “persons, corporations, firms or associations engaged in the business of carrying or transporting passengers or goods or both, by land, water, or air, for compensation, offering their services to the public.” (Civil Code, Article 1732)
Explanation
- Engaged in the business of carrying or transporting passengers or goods, or both. (Civil Code, Article 1732)
- Transports by land, water, or air. (Civil Code, Article 1732)
- For compensation (for pay). (Civil Code, Article 1732)
- Offers its services to the public. (Civil Code, Article 1732)
In addition to the Civil Code definition, the Supreme Court explains that a common carrier is broadly defined as one who is engaged in the business of transporting persons or property from place to place, for compensation, offering services to the public generally. (First Philippine Industrial Corporation v. Court Of Appeals, G.R. No. 125948 (1998-12-29))
The sources also make clear that the definition does not require that the service be done only by a particular kind of vehicle (like motor vehicles), as long as the transportation is by land, water, or air. (First Philippine Industrial Corporation v. Court Of Appeals, G.R. No. 125948 (1998-12-29))
“Common carriers are persons, corporations, firms or associations engaged in the business of carrying or transporting passengers or goods or both, by land, water, or air, for compensation, offering their services to the public.”
This means a person or business is a common carrier when it is in the business of transporting passengers or goods for pay and offers that service to the public, not just for a one-time or casual job. It can be by land, water, or air.
In deciding disputes about who counts as a common carrier, the Supreme Court has also said that “A ‘common carrier’ may be defined, broadly, as one who holds himself out to the public as engaged in the business of transporting persons or property from place to place, for compensation, offering his services to the public generally.” (First Philippine Industrial Corporation v. Court Of Appeals, G.R. No. 125948 (1998-12-29))
This describes the practical idea behind the definition: the key is that the operator presents itself to the public as doing transportation for pay, not whether it transports only one kind of client.
Laws retrieved
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- Article 1732, Obligations and Contracts and Related Laws
"Thus, the petition was reinstated. Petitioner claims that the respondent Court of Appeals erred in holding that (1) the petitioner is not a common carrier or a transportation contractor, and (2) the exemption sought for by petitioner is not clear under the law. There is merit in the petition. A "common carrier" may be defined, broadly, as one who holds himself out to the public as engaged in the business of transporting persons or property from place to place, for compensation, offering his services to the public generally. Art. ... 1732 of the Civil Code defines a "common carrier" as "any person, corporation, f…
"Common carriers are persons, corporations, firms or associations engaged in the business of carrying or transporting passengers or goods or both, by land, water, or air for compensation, offering their services to the public." The above article makes no distinction between one whose _principal_ business activity is the carrying of persons or goods or both, and one who does such carrying only as an _ancillary_ activity . . . Article 1732 also carefully avoids making any distinction between a person or enterprise offering transportation service on a _regular or scheduled basis_ and one offering such service on an…
Cases retrieved
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