Tsakiroglou & Co Ltd v Noblee Thorl GmbH [1962] AC 93
Contract; performance; frustration; risk of changed circumstances.
Facts: Tsakiroglou, a shipping company, sold some goods to Noblee and undertook to deliver them by sea. The contract did not specify a particular time for delivery, nor the route that ship would sail. However, the shortest, quickest and cheapest route was through the Suez Canal. After the contract was made, the Suez Canal was closed by the outbreak of war in that region. Ships that would have used the canal now had to take a long detour via the Cape of Good Hope. This added four weeks to the length of the trip and increased the cost.
Issue: Had the contract been frustrated by these new circumstances?
Decision: The contract was not frustrated.
Reason: As no specified route had been agreed, the shipper was required to use the best available route in the circumstances. Although the route now available would cost more than the route envisaged by the shipper at the time of contracting, that in itself was not sufficient reason to excuse performance on grounds of frustration.