Shipping 2026

SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: José Antonio Domínguez, Mikel Garteiz-Goxeaskoa, Enrique Ortiz and Irantzu Sedano Beitia, Aiyon Abogados SLP

4.3 Ship-Owners’ Liability and Limitation of Liability for Cargo Damages A carrier may be liable for partial or total loss or dam - ages to the cargo, and for delays. The carrier’s liability regime, including limitation, extends to both the con - tractual and the actual carrier, which are considered to be jointly and severally liable towards the holder of the bill of lading. Unless the nature and value of the goods have been declared by the shipper before shipment, a carrier may limit its liability to an equivalent of 666.67 special drawing rights (SDR) per loss or damaged package, or two SDR per kilogramme of gross weight of the goods actually lost or damaged, whichever is the higher. The carrier’s liability for delay will be limited to two and a half times the amount of freight charged for the affected cargo, with the maximum limit equivalent to the freight charged for the complete cargo. The right to limit liability does not apply in the case of wilful misconduct or gross negligence of the carrier. Carriers are entitled to opt for the aforementioned limi - tation of liability regime or to apply the limitation of liability regime under the LLMC 76/96. 4.4 Misdeclaration of Cargo The carrier can establish a claim for damages against the shipper for misdeclaration of cargo, as established in Article 260 of the SSA. Other remedies are the right to discharge the cargo in certain circumstances and the right to destroy it in the case of dangerous goods (following Article 232 of the SSA). Up to January 2026, no relevant judgments have addressed the application of these SSA provisions. 4.5 Time Bar for Filing Claims for Damaged or Lost Cargo The time bar to file a claim for lost or damaged cargo is one year. This time limit applies to both contractual and tort claims. Under the Hague–Visby Rules, this time bar can be extended by agreement of the parties (ie, a time extension) but it cannot be interrupted by a letter of demand addressed to the respondent. If the claim is

not filed within that one-year period or within the time extension, the action is time-barred. The nature of the one-year period of the Hague–Visby Rules has been confirmed by a Supreme Court judgment of 5 Febru - ary 2026. Under Article 286 of the SSA, however, and notwith - standing the statutory remission to the provisions of the Hague-Visby Rules, this one-year time bar has been interpreted in Spanish case law as potentially subject to interruption by a letter of demand. law on the following basis: where the Hague–Visby Rules apply directly, the one-year time bar is not subject to interruption, whereas where the Hague–Visby Rules apply by remission of the Spanish Maritime Naviga - tion Act, the limitation period may, in principle, be subject to interruption by an extrajudicial demand, in accordance with the general rules on prescription under Spanish law. 5. Maritime Liens and Ship Arrests 5.1 Ship Arrests Spain is a member state of the 1999 Arrest Conven - tion, which was signed in Geneva on 12 March 1999 and came into force on 14 September 2011. The domestic law that covers ship arrest in Spain is the SSA, in its Articles 470 et seq, alongside the provi - sions regulating general conservatory measures that can be found in the Spanish Code of Civil Procedure 1/2000 (Articles 721 et seq). 5.2 Maritime Liens Spain is a member state of the 1993 International Con - vention on Maritime Liens and Mortgages (Geneva, 6 May 1993) (the “Lien Convention”), which has been in force in Spain since 5 September 2004. Articles 122 et seq of the SSA provide that maritime liens are governed by the 1993 Lien Convention. Accordingly, and pursuant to Article 4.1 of the Con - vention, maritime liens arise for: • crew wages and related sums, including repatria - tion and social insurance;

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