CMR Convention, scope, responsibilities, liabilities, claims, compensation
Is the CMR mandatory? Who issues it? In which country is it applicable? How does the liability get calculated? What is the time frame for you to put forward a claim? These are some of the questions I have replied over the years and I will take the opportunity here to answer them in full.
Introduction:
The term CMR typically refers to the waybill/consignment note and contractual terms affiliated with it that were agreed at the CMR Convention (full title: ‘Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road’).
The CMR Convention was United Nations convention signed in Geneva in 1956. It standardised the conditions governing the contract for the international carriage of goods by road. It relates to the terms for the contract of carriage, carrier liabilities and the form of the documentation to be used.
CMR derived from the French title “Convention relative au contrat de transport international de marchandises par route”
Scope of application:
The CMR Convention has been ratified by a majority of the European states (45 states), including all EU members with the exception of Malta.
The Convention applies to every contract for the carriage of goods in vehicles by road for hire or reward when the place taking over direct control of the goods and the place designated for delivery, as specified in the contract, are situated in two different countries, and of which at least one is a contracting country. The place of residence and the nationality of the parties are irrespective to this convention and it does not concern own account operations.
The Convention doesn’t apply to:
- Carriage performed under the terms of any international postal convention (mail & parcels)
- Funeral consignments
- Furniture removal
For the purpose of the convention, “vehicles” refers to motor vehicles, articulated vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers as defined in Article 4 of the Convention on Road Traffic dated 19 September 1949, and is also effective where the vehicle containing the goods is carried for part of the journey by sea, rail, inland waterway, or by air.
Be aware that if the goods are unloaded from the trailer/container/truck and are carried separately on another mode of transport, then CMR will not apply to the movement in accordance with Article 2 of the Convention.
The CMR, the consignment note:
The contract of carriage is confirmed by the filling out of a consignment note. However, bear in mind that the contract remains in force even if a consignor forgets to do this or does not fill out the consignment note correctly.
The CMR is made out in three original copies signed by the sender and by the carrier.
Responsibilities and Liabilities:
The convention sets out the responsibilities and liabilities of the sender and the carrier in a series of articles. These are summarised below:
for the full convention, click here
Sender responsibilities:
- Completing the consignment note, although the sender may ask the carrier to do it.
- Providing all relevant transport documents such as customs information and formalities.
- Providing details of any dangerous goods to be delivered and their description.
- Providing the numbers of packages, specials marks and numbers.
Sender liabilities:
The sender is liable for inaccurate or inadequate entries made in the consignment notes and transport documents. The carrier will be able to claim for all expenses, loss and damage sustained. This could be the result of a vehicle being overweight and fined; compounded if the weight was under-declared; or due to waiting time at the port if the ADR details provided were incorrect and required amendment.
The sender is also liable to the carrier for damages to persons, equipment or other goods and for any expenses due to defective packing of the goods, unless the defect was apparent or known to the carrier and no reservations were made when taking over control of the goods.
If your consignment cannot be trans-shipped, it is good practice to write a statement on the CMR note mentioning that trans-shipment isn’t allowed.
Sender right of disposal: The sender may instruct the carrier to stop the goods in transit, change the place of delivery or deliver to someone other than the person named in the consignment note, up to the point when the consignment note is handed to the consignee. From that point on the carrier obeys the instructions of the consignee who may require delivery to be made to a third party.
Carrier responsibilities:
- The carrier is responsible for checking the accuracy of details in the packing list or other transport documents, i.e. number of pallets, contents of the packages, marks and the apparent condition of the goods and the packaging.
- If the carrier does not add any reservations in the CMR note, it is considered that the carrier accepted the goods in full and in good condition.
Carrier liabilities:
The carrier is liable for total or partial loss of the goods, or for any damages caused to them, from the time the goods are collected until the time of delivery as well as for any delay in delivery.
The carrier is liable for the delay even for the reason of the defective conditions of the vehicle used or if the truck is prevented from moving by a DVSA officer.
The carrier shall, however, be relieved of liability if the loss, damage or delay was caused by the wrongful act or neglect of the claimant; by the instructions of the claimant given otherwise than as the result of a wrongful act or neglect on the part of the carrier; by the inherent vice of the goods; or through circumstances which the carrier could not avoid and the consequences of which he was unable to prevent.
If it can be proved that the loss, damage or delay was not caused by some act or omission of the carrier by road and that it could only have happened during the carriage by another mode (e.g. the ship sinks), then the liability will be determined not under CMR but as if the contract had been between the sender and the carrier by the other mode.
The burden of proving that loss, damage or delay due to one of the below outlined causes rests upon the carrier:
- Fault or neglect of the sender.
- Fault or neglect of the consignee.
- Incorrect instructions given by the sender.
- Inherent vice of the goods, i.e. the goods have an existing defect.
- Defective packaging/marking.
- Poor handling by the sender, consignee or agents.
- The nature of certain kinds of goods which particularly exposes them to total or partial loss or to damage, i.e. big bags overhanging the pallet.
- The use of open vehicle with no curtainsider (flatbed trailer).
Claims
Damages & loss
The CMR Convention states that the carrier is liable to pay compensation for the total/partial loss or damage to the goods carried.
If the damages or loss are apparent, the consignee must, at the time of taking the goods, give the carrier a reservation by providing a general indication of the loss or damages and this must be noted on the CMR note.
If the damages or loss aren’t apparent, the consignee must send reservations within 7 days, excluding Sundays and bank holidays.
If it is presumed that the goods are lost, the owner is entitled to compensation from the carrier if they are not delivered within 30 days of the expiry date of the agreed time limit for delivery or when there is no time limit, 60 days from the date when the carrier collected them.
Always agree a delivery time frame for your orders, it will speed up the recovery time of your claim.
Delays:
Damages are payable for delays in delivery but limited to the carriage charges, provided that the claim is made in writing within 21 days of the goods being delivered and that the claim is supported with evidence.
Limitations:
The time frame for any claims arising out of the carriage under the CMR Convention is one year.
- One year from the day of the delivery for loss or damages
- One year from the thirtieth day after the expiry of the agreed time-limit or where there is no agreed time-limit from the sixtieth day from the date on which the goods were taken over by the carrier
It is extended to 3 years where the carrier alleges deliberate misconduct.
Compensation:
Claims for compensation are limited, unless a special interest agreement is declared (agreeing with your carrier a higher compensation rate prior to booking the transport, like full value insurance – your carrier will most likely ask you to pay a premium to support the level of liability required).
The compensation rate is limited to a value of 8.33 SDR per kg (Special Drawing Rights)
The SDR is an international reserve asset created by the International Monetary Fund, the value of which based on a basket of five currencies—the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Chinese renminbi, the Japanese yen, and the British pound sterling. The value in terms of the US dollar is calculated daily by the international Monetary Fund (IMF) and published on their website, click here.
Actual liabilities can vary from day to day depending on the strength of the various currencies against the dollar on the international money markets.
The Sterling currency unit per SDR can be found on the IMF website, here.
Here is an example of calculation:
£1.09 (sterling currency unit per SDR) * 8.33 (SDR) * 1000 (kgs) = £9 079 per tonne.
In addition, the carriage charges, customs duties and other charges incurred in the respect of the carriage can be refunded in full in case of total loss and in proportion to the loss sustained in case of a partial loss, but no further damage shall be payable.
Finally, in the case of delay, if the claimant proves that damage has resulted, compensation can be attributed but not exceeding the carriage charges.
Yours faithfully,
Jean-Philippe Guérin.
