Definition
The person who delivers goods to another (the bailee) for a specific purpose, on the understanding that the goods will be returned or disposed of according to the bailor's directions once the purpose is accomplished.
A bailor is one of the two parties to a contract of bailment under Section 148 ICA. The bailor retains ownership of the goods — only possession is transferred to the bailee. The bailor has obligations: (a) to disclose known faults in the goods (Section 150 ICA — in gratuitous bailment, concealed defect liability; in non-gratuitous bailment, liability for all faults even unknown); (b) to indemnify the bailee for extraordinary expenses and loss from undisclosed defects; and (c) to receive back the goods when the purpose is accomplished. A bailor's essential characteristic: ownership is NOT transferred — only possession is given for a limited purpose.
Statutory Definition
Section 148, Indian Contract Act, 1872: 'A bailment is the delivery of goods by one person to another for some purpose, upon a contract that they shall, when the purpose is accomplished, be returned or otherwise disposed of according to the directions of the person delivering them. The person delivering the goods is called the bailor. The person to whom they are delivered is called the bailee.'
Etymology & Origin
From Old French 'bailler' (to give, to deliver) from Latin 'bajulare' (to carry a burden). The 'bailor' is the one who 'bails' (delivers) — gives temporary possession of goods for a specific purpose.
Full Legal Analysis
Bailor: Owner Who Gives Temporary Possession
The bailor-bailee relationship is one of the most common in everyday life — when you give your car to a parking attendant, your suit to a dry-cleaner, your jewellery to a goldsmith, your goods to a warehouseman, you are the bailor. The relationship is built on trust: the bailor entrusts possession to the bailee for a specific purpose, retaining ownership and the right to have the goods returned.
Bailor’s Duty to Disclose Defects: Section 150
The bailor has a duty to disclose known faults in the goods bailed. The standard differs by type of bailment: (a) Gratuitous bailment: Bailor is liable only for faults known to them and concealed (Section 150(1)). (b) Non-gratuitous bailment (for reward): Bailor is responsible for all damage caused by defects, whether known or unknown — the bailor is strictly liable for undisclosed defects in goods bailed for reward (Section 150(2)). Example: if you hire out a boat that has a hidden leak, and the bailee is injured, you are liable even if you didn't know about the leak.
Finder of Goods as Bailee: Section 71
A finder of lost goods is treated as a bailee of those goods under Section 71 ICA — their obligations are those of a bailee towards the true owner (bailor). The finder must take reasonable care of the goods (as a reasonable person would take of their own), must not use the goods for their own benefit, and must return them to the true owner when found. The finder has a right of lien for expenses reasonably incurred in preservation of the goods.
“Bailment is the transfer of possession without transfer of ownership. The bailor gives the goods — not the title. The law maintains this distinction strictly: the bailee possesses but cannot own; the bailor owns but has temporarily given up possession.”
This Term in Indian Statutes
Indian Contract Act, 1872, 1872
"A bailment is the delivery of goods by one person to another for some purpose, upon a contract that they shall, when the purpose is accomplished, be returned or otherwise disposed of according to the directions of the person delivering them. The person delivering the goods is called the bailor."
Definition of bailment and bailor — delivery of goods for a purpose, retaining ownership
