Chapter 10Contracts for the supply of goods and services1989)). He considered that innocent purchasers were
inadequately protected by the law. He recommended
strengthening the rights of the innocent purchaser by
providing that where the owner of goods has entrusted
those goods to, or acquiesced in their possession by,
another person, then an innocent purchaser of those
goods should acquire good title. In 1994 the govern-
ment initiated consultations on whether reform of the
law was required. Views were sought on the following
proposals:
■simplification of the law and increased protection for
innocent purchasers based on Professor Diamond’s
recommendations;
■abolition of the rule of market overt (see below);
■extension of the principle in Part III, Hire Purchase
Act 1964 to all goods subject to HP or conditional sale
agreements and goods held on lease or covered by a
bill of sale.
While the consultations were taking place, a private
member’s Bill to abolish the rule of market overt was
enacted with government support.
Repeal of s 22 (sale in market overt)
The principle of nemo datused not to apply to sales in
market overt. The rule of market overt was established
in the Middle Ages. It provided that if a purchaser bought
goods according to the usages of the market in good faith
and without notice of any defect in the title of the seller,
he acquired good title. The term ‘market overt’ applied
to every shop in the City of London and every public
market legally constituted by Royal Charter, statute or
custom. The common law rules of market overt were
included in the statutory exceptions to nemo datby s 22
of the Sale of Goods Act 1979. The rule of market overt
led to some curious decisions. For example, in Reidv
Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis(1973) title to
a pair of stolen Adam candelabra depended on whether
the purchase from a stall at the New Caledonian Market
in Southwark had taken place before or after sunrise.
(The rules of market overt only applied to sales which
took place between sunrise and sunset.) The innocent
purchaser did not acquire good title because the sale
took place early in the morning before the sun had risen.
Although the government was in the process of seeking
views about the rule of sale in market overt, it allowed
the rule to be abolished by the Sale of Goods (Amend-
ment) Act 1994. The Act came into force on 3 January
- From that date, the purchaser of goods in market
overt obtains no better title to them than the seller had.
Performance of the contract
It is the duty of the seller to deliver the goods and the
buyer’s duty to accept and pay for them. The parties are
free to make their own arrangements about the time and
place of delivery and payment. The Act sets out the
obligations of the seller and buyer when they have not
dealt with these matters specifically in their agreement.
Section 28 provides:
‘Unless otherwise agreed, delivery of the goods and pay-
ment of the price are concurrent conditions...’
This means that the seller can hold on to the goods until
the buyer has paid for them.Delivery (s 29)Delivery in the context of the Act means the voluntary
transfer of possession from one person to another. The
delivery may consist of:■physically handing over the goods;
■handing over the means of control of the goods, e.g.
the keys to the premises where they are stored;
■transferring documents of title; or
■where the goods are in the possession of a third party,
an acknowledgement by the third party that he is
holding the goods on behalf of the buyer.Place of delivery (s 29)
In the absence of any agreement to the contrary, the
place of delivery is the seller’s place of business; it is up
to the buyer to come and collect the goods (s 29(1)).Delivery to a carrier (s 32)
If the seller agrees to send the goods and engages a
carrier for this purpose, s 32 provides that delivery to the
carrier is deemed to be delivery to the buyer. The seller
must make the best possible contract with the carrier on
behalf of the buyer to ensure the safe arrival of the goods.
The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations
2002 amend s 32 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 by pro-
viding that, where the buyer deals as a consumer, if the
seller is authorised or required to send the goods to the315