B-162532, NOV. 22, 1967

B-162532, NOV. 22, 1967

TRANSPORTATION - HOUSEHOLD EFFECTS - MILITARY PERSONNEL EXCESS WEIGHT DECISION TO NAVY OFFICER ALLOWING REFUND FOR COSTS OF SHIPPING HOUSEHOLD EFFECTS IN SEVERAL LOTS IN EXCESS OF WEIGHT ALLOWANCE ON BASIS OF EXCESSIVE PACKING. WHERE REPORT OF NAVY INSPECTOR AND PHOTOGRAPHS SHOW OVERPACKING THE WEIGHT OF THE SHIPMENT SHOULD BE REDUCED AND EXCESS COST RECOMPUTED.

TO LIEUTENANT COMMANDER JAMES A. DICKEY, USN:

FURTHER REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR REQUEST FOR REVIEW OF THE SETTLEMENT OF FEBRUARY 11, 1966, WHICH DISALLOWED YOUR CLAIM FOR REFUND OF THE AMOUNT COLLECTED FROM YOU AS THE COST OF SHIPPING AN EXCESS WEIGHT OF HOUSEHOLD GOODS.

YOUR HOUSEHOLD GOODS WERE SHIPPED INCIDENT TO BUREAU OF NAVAL PERSONNEL ORDER NO. 000256 DATED APRIL 6, 1963, WHICH TRANSFERRED YOU FROM BANGKOK, THAILAND, TO ALAMEDA, CALIFORNIA, AS A PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION. YOUR RANK AT THAT TIME WAS LIEUTENANT AND YOUR AUTHORIZED WEIGHT ALLOWANCE UNDER PARAGRAPH M8003 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS WAS 8,500 POUNDS. YOU SHIPPED YOUR EFFECTS TO YOUR NEW STATION IN FIVE LOTS. THE FIRST SHIPMENT WHICH WAS DETERMINED TO WEIGH 6,398 NET POUNDS WAS BY THROUGH VAN FROM BANGKOK. THE SECOND WAS 204 NET POUNDS BY AIR FREIGHT FROM BANGKOK. THE THIRD WAS 2,489 NET POUNDS BY VAN FROM SANFORD, FLORIDA, THE FOURTH 179 TOTAL POUNDS BY EXPRESS FROM ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND, AND THE FIFTH 825 TOTAL POUNDS BY VAN FROM MEDICINE LODGE, KANSAS, VIA WICHITA, KANSAS. SINCE YOUR AUTHORIZED WEIGHT ALLOWANCE OF HOUSEHOLD GOODS ON THE BASIS OF THESE WEIGHTS WAS EXCEEDED IN THE THIRD SHIPMENT, THE FOURTH AND FIFTH SHIPMENTS WERE ENTIRELY IN EXCESS.

THE COST OF SHIPPING HOUSEHOLD EFFECTS IN EXCESS OF YOUR AUTHORIZED WEIGHT ALLOWANCE SHOWN IN PAY CHECK AGE AUTHORIZATIONS ISSUED TO YOU IN THE AMOUNTS OF $109.78, $70.95 AND $185.38 WAS COMPUTED AS FOLLOWS:

POUNDS EXCESS COST

SHIPMENT NO. 1, 6,735 LBS.

LESS 5 PERCENT (337 LBS.) 6,398

SHIPMENT NO. 2, 340 LBS.

LESS 40 PERCENT (136 LBS.) 204

SHIPMENT NO. 3, 2,620 LBS.

LESS 5 PERCENT (131 LBS.) 2,489

NET SHIPPED 9,091

NET AUTHORIZED 8,500

NET EXCESS 591

PLUS 5.263 PERCENT 31

GROSS EXCESS 622

TRANSPORTATION, 622 LBS.

$17.65 PER CWT. $109.78

SHIPMENT NO. 3, TWO MONTHS

STORAGE IN TRANSIT,

622 LBS. ?60 CWT. PER

MONTH $7.46; WAREHOUSE

HANDLING ?60 PER CWT.

$3.73, DRAYAGE $2.50

PER CWT. $15.55 ($26.74);

ERRONEOUS REIMBURSEMENT

ON SHIPMENT NO. 4, 179 LBS.

ENTIRELY EXCESS $44.21 $70.95

SHIPMENT NO. 5, 825 LBS.

ENTIRELY EXCESS, PACKING,

CRATING AND HAULING, MEDICINE

LODGE TO WICHITA, $12 PER

CWT. $99, TRANSPORTATION

WICHITA TO ALAMEDA, $8.07

PER CWT. $66.58, DRAYAGE AND

UNPACKING $2.40 PER CWT.

$19.80 185.38

TOTAL EXCESS COST $366.11

YOUR CLAIM FOR REFUND OF $366.11 BASED ON EXCESSIVE PACKING IN THE FIRST SHIPMENT WAS DISALLOWED BY THE SETTLEMENT MENTIONED ABOVE ON THE BASIS OF A REPORT FROM NAVY FINANCE CENTER THAT THE WEIGHTS AND EXCESS COST COMPUTATION SHOWN ABOVE WERE CONSIDERED CORRECT; THAT IS, THAT THE RECORD DID NOT SUPPORT YOUR CONTENTION OF OVERPACKING IN THE FIRST SHIPMENT. THE AMOUNT OF $410.32 SHOWN IN THE SETTLEMENT WAS BASED ON THE ERRONEOUS INCLUSION OF THE SUM OF $44.21 AS AN ADDITIONAL ITEM ALTHOUGH IT WAS ALREADY INCLUDED IN THE CHECK AGE IN THE SUM OF $70.95.

THE WEIGHT ALLOWANCES SET FORTH IN PARAGRAPH M8003 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS ARE INTENDED TO REPRESENT THE NET WEIGHT OF HOUSEHOLD GOODS AUTHORIZED TO BE TRANSPORTED AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE. PARAGRAPH M8002-1 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT WHEN THE ACTUAL NET WEIGHT OF UNPACKED AND UNCRATED HOUSEHOLD GOODS IS NOT KNOWN AND THE EFFECTS ARE SHIPPED IN AN UNCRATED CONDITION BY SEA VAN OR MOTOR VAN THE NET WEIGHT CHARGEABLE TO THE MEMBER WILL BE DETERMINED BY SUBTRACTING 5 PERCENT FROM THE GROSS WEIGHT OF THE SHIPMENT. SINCE THE FIRST SHIPMENT, WEIGHING 6,735 POUNDS, WAS BILLED AS HAVING BEEN SHIPPED BY VAN FROM BANGKOK, THAILAND, TO HAYWARD, CALIFORNIA, THE WEIGHT CHARGEABLE TO YOUR ALLOWANCE WAS DETERMINED BY SUBTRACTING 5 PERCENT (337 POUNDS), RESULTING IN A NET WEIGHT OF 6,398 POUNDS. SHIPMENTS OF THIS NATURE NORMALLY ARE MADE IN A LARGE CONTAINER AND THE ITEMS ARE PROTECTED BY PADS. THE 5 PERCENT IS TO ALLOW FOR SUCH PACKING.

PARAGRAPH M8002-3 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT IN INSTANCES WHERE, THROUGH NO FAULT OF THE MEMBER, THE TARE WEIGHT OF A SHIPMENT IS IN EXCESS OF THE ALLOWANCES PRESCRIBED IN SUBPARAGRAPHS 1 AND 2, THE CASE MAY BE REFERRED TO THE APPROPRIATE AUTHORITY OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICE CONCERNED FOR AUTHORITY TO DEVIATE FROM THESE ALLOWANCES. THE RECORD CONTAINS A REPORT BY A NAVY INSPECTOR WHO INSPECTED THIS SHIPMENT AT YOUR RESIDENCE IN HAYWARD ON OCTOBER 18, 1963. HIS REPORT SHOWS THAT THERE WAS EXCESSIVE PACKING IN THAT CERTAIN ITEMS WERE CRATED IN EXCESSIVELY HEAVY MATERIAL PRIOR TO BEING PLACED IN THE SHIPPING CONTAINER. THE REPORT STATES THAT A GLASS TOP FOR A DESK AND TWO PAINTINGS, HAVING AN ACTUAL WEIGHT OF 102 POUNDS HAD A SHIPPING WEIGHT OF 741 POUNDS; THAT PICTURES WERE CRATED AND PLACED IN THE SHIPPING CONTAINERS; THAT THIS INVOLVED FIVE CRATES HAVING A TARE WEIGHT OF 200 POUNDS, AND THAT SMALL ITEMS WERE PLACED IN SEVEN BOXES HAVING A TARE WEIGHT OF 200 POUNDS. ON THE BASIS OF THAT REPORT, WHICH APPEARS TO BE SUPPORTED BY PHOTOGRAPHS OF BOXES AND CRATES FURNISHED BY YOU, THE NAVY FINANCE CENTER HAS NOW DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS OVERPACKING ON THE FIRST SHIPMENT AND HAS RECOMMENDED THAT THE WEIGHT OF THE SHIPMENT BE REDUCED BY 1,141 POUNDS AND THE EXCESS COST COMPUTED ACCORDINGLY.

SINCE IT APPEARS FROM THE NAVY INSPECTOR'S REPORT THAT THE TOTAL OF 1,141 POUNDS INCLUDED 102 POUNDS OF HOUSEHOLD EFFECTS, THE WEIGHT OF THE PACKING MATERIALS INVOLVED WAS 1,039 POUNDS. ALSO, SINCE YOU HAD ALREADY BEEN ALLOWED 5 PERCENT (337 POUNDS) FOR PACKING ON THE ENTIRE SHIPMENT OR 57 POUNDS ON THE WEIGHT OF 1,141 POUNDS, YOU ARE ENTITLED TO A REDUCTION OF 982 POUNDS (1,039 LESS 57) FOR EXCESSIVE PACKING ON THE FIRST SHIPMENT. ON THAT BASIS THE NET WEIGHT OF THE FIRST SHIPMENT IS REDUCED FROM 6,398 POUNDS TO 5,416 POUNDS AND THE EXCESS COST RECOMPUTED AS FOLLOWS:

POUNDS EXCESS COST

SHIPMENT NO. 1 5,416

SHIPMENT NO. 2 204

SHIPMENT NO. 3 2,489

SHIPMENT NO. 4 179

SHIPMENT NO. 5,

825 LBS. LESS 5 PERCENT (41 LBS.) 784

ADJUSTED SHIPPED WEIGHT 9,072

AUTHORIZED ALLOWANCE 8,500

NET EXCESS WEIGHT 572

PLUS 5.263 PERCENT FOR PACKING 30

602

EXCESS COST 602 X $185.38 $135.27

825

SINCE THE EXCESS COST AS RECOMPUTED IS $135.27 AND A TOTAL OF $366.11 WAS COLLECTED FROM YOU, YOU ARE ENTITLED TO REFUND IN THE AMOUNT OF $230.84 AND A SETTLEMENT ALLOWING YOU THAT AMOUNT WILL ISSUE IN DUE COURSE.