Carrier Accused of Holding Cargo ‘Hostage’ to Gain Leverage in Dispute
American Iron & Metal Co. (AIM), a Montreal-based scrap metal recycling company, has accused non-vessel operating common carrier Priva Logistics of New York state of preventing it from retrieving cargo shipped to India and Italy, according to a complaint filed with the Federal Maritime Commission.
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AIM alleges that Priva is blocking the release of the cargo because of a dispute over an unrelated shipment to Malaysia in 2024. AIM asserts that using the India and Italy cargo as “leverage” in the Malaysia dispute violates the Shipping Act.
“When AIM booked the Italy and India shipments with Priva, Priva did not state that it would refuse to release those shipments based on the disputes related to the separate Malaysia shipment,” the complaint says. “Instead, Priva accepted the Italy and India shipments and then sought to renegotiate the terms of transportation associated with the Malaysia shipment by holding AIM’s freight hostage.”
AIM said that as a result of Priva’s conduct, it has sustained damages including “pending demurrage charges for freight not yet released or invoiced, storage fees, disruption of commercial relationships, damage to its business reputation, and additional operational costs."
The complaint was served July 3. Priva didn’t respond to a request for comment.