KATSINA-ALU, JSC (Delivering the Lead Judgment): The plaintiff’s claim against the defendant at the Federal High Court, Kaduna was in the following terms:
(a) DM 111,638.80 Deutsche Mark or N6,698,280.00 its Naira equivalent at the current exchange rate of N60.00 to DM1 being the value of the goods insured with the defendant but not delivered to the plaintiff.
(b) N150,000.00 being the amount the plaintiff paid for clearance and import duties for the goods imported and insured with the defendant.
(c) N2,000,000.00 being general damages for the embarrassment and loss of business due to non-payment by the plaintiff to the manufacturers for goods supplied occasioned by the refusal of the defendant to pay the plaintiff which led to almost total business collapse of the plaintiff.
(d) DM 41,045.48 being value of goods packing and sea freight as per invoice numbers 26824, 26825 and 96296.
The main defence of the defendant was that no report of the alleged loss of the goods insured was made t…