Contract law

Contract law

Surf plc sells surfboards. It generally sells boards which are mass produced by other companies, but it also sells some Professional Level boards which it produces itself in small numbers. Brian is a professional surfer, who makes money from competitions, displays and sponsorship, and occasionally uses his board for personal enjoyment.
When his previous board was damaged, Brian urgently needed a new board because of an upcoming display, and, having heard good things about them, he purchased one of Surf plc’s Professional Level boards from their shop. Surf Plc has a sign in their shop stating
‘Our liability to any purchaser of one of our Professional Level boards is limited to the price of the board’.
The sign is on the wall at the till in Surf plc’s shop. It is blue lettering on a yellow background, and Brian has an unusual form of colour blindness which meant that he could not read it.
Brian took the board to the display the following day, but discovered during the pre-display practice time, that the board’s balance was incorrect, and he could barely stay on it. He pulled out of the display. He could have gone ahead with a board which his friend offered to lend him, but it was only an Amateur Level board and he feared that even with the borrowed board, his performance would be so far below what he could achieve with a properly balanced Professional Level board, that he would damage his reputation if he went ahead with the display.
As he pulled out of the display, Brian did not receive the fee which he would have received for the display. Had he performed at his usual standard in the display, Brian would have received an unusually lucrative sponsorship deal.
The board Brian bought was not reasonably fit for its purpose within the term implied by s14(3) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979. This has been conceded by Surf plc and you do not need to consider what is required by s14(3). You should assume that Brian would have performed to his usual standard had he performed with a Professional Level board which did comply with the term implied by s14(3) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979.
Advise Brian
Explain how, if at all, your advice to Brian would differ, if when he was looking at boards with the owner of Surf plc, before purchasing one, it should have been clear to the owner of Surf plc that Brian had a form of blue / yellow colour blindness, from what he said about the colour schemes of various boards.