Consignment
CMR Convention
CHAPTER III
Conclusion and performance of the contract of carriage
Article 4
The contract of carriage shall be confirmed by the making out of a consignment note. The absence, irregularity or loss of the consignment note shall not affect the existence or the validity of the contract of carriage which shall remain subject to the provisions of this Convention.
Article 5
1. The consignment note shall be made out in three original copies signed by the sender and by the carrier. These signatures may be printed or replaced by the stamps of the sender and the carrier if the law of the country in which the consignment note has been made out so permits. The first copy shall be handed to the sender, the second shall accompany the goods and the third shall be retained by the carrier.
2. When the goods which are to be carried have to be loaded in different vehicles, or are of different kinds or are divided into different lots, the sender or the carrier shall have the right to require a separate consignment note to be made out for each vehicle used, or for each kind or lot of goods.
Article 6
1. The consignment note shall contain the following particulars:
(a) the date of the consignment note and the place at which it is made out;
(b) the name and address of the sender;
(c) the name and address of the carrier;
(d) the place and the date of taking over of the goods and the place designated for delivery;
(e) the name and address of the consignee;
(f) the description in common use of the nature of the goods and the method of packing, and, in the case of dangerous goods, their generally recognised description;
(g) the number of packages and their special marks and numbers;
(h) the gross weight of the goods or their quantity otherwise expressed;
(i) charges relating to the carriage (carriage charges, supplementary charges, customs duties and other charges incurred from the making of the contract to the time of delivery);
(j) the requisite instructions for Customs and other formalities;
(k) a statement that the carriage is subject, notwithstanding any clause to the contrary, to the provisions of this Convention.
2. Where applicable, the consignment note shall also contain the following particulars:
(a) a statement that transhipment is not allowed;
(b) the charges which the sender undertakes to pay;
(c) the amount of “cash on delivery” charges;
(d) a declaration of the value of the goods and the amount representing special interest in delivery;
(e) the sender’s instructions to the carrier regarding insurance of the goods;
(f) the agreed time-limit within which the carriage is to be carried out;
(g) a list of the documents handed to the carrier.
3. The parties may enter in the consignment note any other particulars which they may deem useful.
Article 7
1. The sender shall be responsible for all expenses, loss and damage sustained by the carrier by reason of the inaccuracy of:
(a) the particulars specified in article 6, paragraph 1, (b), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) and (j);
(b) the particulars specified in article 6, paragraph 2;
(c) any other particulars or instructions given by him to enable the consignment note to be made out or for the purpose of their being entered therein.
2. If, at the request of the sender, the carrier enters in the consignment note the particulars referred to in paragraph 1 of this article, he shall be deemed, unless the contrary is proved, to have done so on behalf of the sender.
3. If the consignment note does not contain the statement specified in article 6, paragraph 1 (k), the carrier shall be liable for all expenses, loss and damage sustained through such omission by the person entitled to dispose of the goods.
Article 8
1. On taking over the goods, the carrier shall check:
(a) the accuracy of the statements in the consignment note as to the number of packages and their marks and numbers, and
(b) the apparent condition of the goods and their packaging.
2. Where the carrier has no reasonable means of checking the accuracy of the statements referred to in paragraph 1 (a) of this article he shall enter his reservations in the consignment note together with the grounds on which they are based. He shall likewise specify the grounds for any reservations which he makes with regard to the apparent condition of the goods and their packaging. Such reservations shall not bind the sender unless he has expressly agreed to be bound by them in the consignment note.
3. The sender shall be entitled to require the carrier to check the gross weight of the goods or their quantity otherwise expressed. He may also require the contents of the packages to be checked. The carrier shall be entitled to claim the cost of such checking. The result of the checks shall be entered in the consignment note.
Article 9
1. The consignment note shall be prima facie evidence of the making of the contract of carriage, the conditions of the contract and the receipt of the goods by the carrier.
2. If the consignment note contains no specific reservations by the carrier, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, that the goods and their packaging appeared to be in good condition when the carrier took them over and that the number of packages, their marks and numbers corresponded with the statements in the consignment note.
Article 10
The sender shall be liable to the carrier for damage 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 at the time when he took over the goods and he made no reservations concerning it.
Article 11
1. For the purposes of the Customs or other formalities which have to be completed before delivery of the goods, the sender shall attach the necessary documents to the consignment note or place them at the disposal of the carrier and shall furnish him with all the information which he requires.
2. The carrier shall not be under any duty to inquire into either the accuracy or the adequacy of such documents and information. The sender shall be liable to the carrier for any damage caused by the absence, inadequacy or irregularity of such documents and information, except in the case of some wrongful act or neglect on the part of the carrier.
3. The liability of the carrier for the consequences arising from the loss or incorrect use of the documents specified in and accompanying the consignment note or deposited with the carrier shall be that of an agent, provided that the compensation payable by the carrier shall not exceed that payable in the event of loss of the goods.
Article 12
1. The sender has the right to dispose of the goods, in particular by asking the carrier to stop the goods in transit, to change the place at which delivery is to take place or to deliver the goods to a consignee other than the consignee indicated in the consignment note.
2. This right shall cease to exist when the second copy of the consignment note is handed to the consignee or when the consignee exercises his right under article 13, paragraph 1; from that time onwards the carrier shall obey the orders of the consignee.
3. The consignee shall, however, have the right of disposal from the time when the consignment note is drawn up, if the sender makes an entry to that effect in the consignment note.
4. If in exercising his right of disposal the consignee has ordered the delivery of the goods to another person, that other person shall not be entitled to name other consignees.
5. The exercise of the right of disposal shall be subject to the following conditions:
(a) That the sender or, in the case referred to in paragraph 3 of this article, the consignee who wishes to exercise the right produces the first copy of the consignment note on which the new instructions to the carrier have been entered and indemnifies the carrier against all expenses, loss and damage involved in carrying out such instructions;
(b) That the carrying out of such instructions is possible at the time when the instructions reach the person who is to carry them out and does not either interfere with the normal working of the carriers’ undertaking or prejudice the senders or consignees of other consignments;
(c) That the instructions do not result in a division of the consignment.
6. When, by reason of the provisions of paragraph 5 (b) of this article, the carrier cannot carry out the instructions which he receives, he shall immediately notify the person who gave him such instructions.
7. A carrier who has not carried out the instructions given under the conditions provided for in this article or who has carried them out without requiring the first copy of the consignment note to be produced, shall be liable to the person entitled to make a claim for any loss or damage caused thereby.
Article 13
1. After arrival of the goods at the place designated for delivery, the consignee shall be entitled to require the carrier to deliver to him, against a receipt, the second copy of the consignment note and the goods. If the loss of the goods is established or if the goods have not arrived after the expiry of the period provided for in article 19, the consignee shall be entitled to enforce in his own name against the carrier any rights arising from the contract of carriage.
2. The consignee who avails himself of the rights granted to him under paragraph 1 of this article shall pay the charges shown to be due on the consignment note, but in the event of dispute on this matter the carrier shall not be required to deliver the goods unless security has been furnished by the consignee.
Article 14
1. If for any reason it is or becomes impossible to carry out the contract in accordance with the terms laid down in the consignment note before the goods reach the place designated for delivery, the carrier shall ask for instructions from the person entitled to dispose of the goods in accordance with the provisions of article 12.
2. Nevertheless, if circumstances are such as to allow the carriage to be carried out under conditions differing from those laid down in the consignment note and if the carrier has been unable to obtain instructions in reasonable time from the person entitled to dispose of the goods in accordance with the provisions of article 12, he shall take such steps as seem to him to be in the best interests of the person entitled to dispose of the goods.
Article 15
1. Where circumstances prevent delivery of the goods after their arrival at the place designated for delivery, the carrier shall ask the sender for his instructions. If the consignee refuses the goods the sender shall be entitled to dispose of them without being obliged to produce the first copy of the consignment note.
2. Even if he has refused the goods, the consignee may nevertheless require delivery so long as the carrier has not received instructions to the contrary from the sender.
3. When circumstances preventing delivery of the goods arise after the consignee, in exercise of his rights under article 12, paragraph 3, has given an order for the goods to be delivered to another person, paragraphs 1 and 2 of this article shall apply as if the consignee were the sender and that other person were the consignee.
Article 16
1. The carrier shall be entitled to recover the cost of his request for instructions and any expenses entailed in carrying out such instructions, unless such expenses were caused by the wrongful act or neglect of the carrier.
2. In the cases referred to in article 14, paragraph 1, and in article 15, the carrier may immediately unload the goods for account of the person entitled to dispose of them and thereupon the carriage shall be deemed to be at an end. The carrier shall then hold the goods on behalf of the person so entitled. He may, however, entrust them to a third party, and in that case he shall not be under any liability except for the exercise of reasonable care in the choice of such third party. The charges due under the consignment note and all other expenses shall remain chargeable against the goods.
3. The carrier may sell the goods, without awaiting instructions from the person entitled to dispose of them, if the goods are perishable or their condition warrants such a course, or when the storage expenses would be out of proportion to the value of the goods. He may also proceed to the sale of the goods in other cases if after the expiry of a reasonable period he has not received from the person entitled to dispose of the goods instructions to the contrary which he may reasonably be required to carry out.
4. If the goods have been sold pursuant to this article, the proceeds of sale, after deduction of the expenses chargeable against the goods, shall be placed at the disposal of the person entitled to dispose of the goods. If these charges exceed the proceeds of sale, the carrier shall be entitled to the difference.
5. The procedure in the case of sale shall be determined by the law or custom of the place where the goods are situated.
…….
ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE CONVENTION
ON THE CONTRACT FOR THE INTERNATIONAL CARRIAGE OF GOODS BY ROAD
(CMR) CONCERNING THE ELECTRONIC CONSIGNMENT NOTE
THE PARTIES TO THIS PROTOCOL,
BEING PARTIES to the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by
Road (CMR), done at Geneva on 19 May 1956,
DESIROUS OF supplementing the Convention in order to facilitate the optional making out of
the consignment note by means of procedures used for the electronic recording and handling of
data,
HAVE AGREED as follows:
Article 1
Definitions
For the purposes of this Protocol,
“Convention” means the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by
Road (CMR);
“Electronic communication” means information generated, sent, received or stored by electronic,
optical, digital or similar means with the result that the information communicated is accessible
so as to be usable for subsequent reference;
“Electronic consignment note” means a consignment note issued by electronic communication
by the carrier, the sender or any other party interested in the performance of a contract of
carriage to which the Convention applies, including particulars logically associated with the
electronic communication by attachments or otherwise linked to the electronic communication
contemporaneously with or subsequent to its issue, so as to become part of the electronic
consignment note;
“Electronic signature” means data in electronic form which are attached to or logically
associated with other electronic data and which serve as a method of authentication.
Article 2
Scope and effect of the electronic consignment note
1. Subject to the provisions of this Protocol, the consignment note referred to in the
Convention, as well as any demand, declaration, instruction, request, reservation or other
communication relating to the performance of a contract of carriage to which the Convention
applies, may be made out by electronic communication.
2. An electronic consignment note that complies with the provisions of this Protocol shall be
considered to be equivalent to the consignment note referred to in the Convention and shall
therefore have the same evidentiary value and produce the same effects as that consignment note.
Article 3
Authentication of the electronic consignment note
1. The electronic consignment note shall be authenticated by the parties to the contract of
carriage by means of a reliable electronic signature that ensures its link with the electronic
consignment note. The reliability of an electronic signature method is presumed, unless
otherwise proved, if the electronic signature:
(a) is uniquely linked to the signatory;
(b) is capable of identifying the signatory;
(c) is created using means that the signatory can maintain under his sole control; and
(d) is linked to the data to which it relates in such a manner that any subsequent change
of the data is detectable.
2. The electronic consignment note may also be authenticated by any other electronic
authentication method permitted by the law of the country in which the electronic consignment
note has been made out.
3. The particulars contained in the electronic consignment note shall be accessible to any
party entitled thereto.
Article 4
Conditions for the establishment of the electronic consignment note
1. The electronic consignment note shall contain the same particulars as the consignment note
referred to in the Convention.
2. The procedure used to issue the electronic consignment note shall ensure the integrity of
the particulars contained therein from the time when it was first generated in its final form. There
is integrity when the particulars have remained complete and unaltered, apart from any addition
or change which arises in the normal course of communication, storage and display.
3. The particulars contained in the electronic consignment note may be supplemented or
amended in the cases authorized by the Convention.
The procedure used for supplementing or amending the electronic consignment note shall
make it possible to detect as such any supplement or amendment to the electronic consignment
note and shall preserve the particulars originally contained therein.
Article 5
Implementation of the electronic consignment note
1. The parties interested in the performance of the contract of carriage shall agree on the
procedures and their implementation in order to comply with the requirements of this Protocol
and the Convention, in particular as regards:
(a) The method for the issuance and the delivery of the electronic consignment note to
the entitled party;
(b) An assurance that the electronic consignment note retains its integrity;
(c) The manner in which the party entitled to the rights arising out of the electronic
consignment note is able to demonstrate that entitlement;
(d) The way in which confirmation is given that delivery to the consignee has been
effected;
(e) The procedures for supplementing or amending the electronic consignment note; and
(f) The procedures for the possible replacement of the electronic consignment note by a
consignment note issued by different means.
2. The procedures in paragraph 1 must be referred to in the electronic consignment note and
shall be readily ascertainable.
Article 6
Documents supplementing the electronic consignment note
1. The carrier shall hand over to the sender, at the latter’s request, a receipt for the goods and
all information necessary for identifying the shipment and for access to the electronic
consignment note to which this Protocol refers.
2. The documents referred to in Article 6, paragraph 2 (g) and Article 11 of the Convention
may be furnished by the sender to the carrier in the form of an electronic communication if the
documents exist in this form and if the parties have agreed to procedures enabling a link to be
established between these documents and the electronic consignment note to which this Protocol
refers in a manner that assures their integrity.
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 7
Signature, ratification, accession
1. This Protocol shall be open for signature by States which are signatories to or Parties to the
Convention and are either members of the Economic Commission for Europe or have been
admitted to the Commission in a consultative capacity under paragraph 8 of the Commission’s
terms of reference.
2. This Protocol shall be open for signature at Geneva from 27 to 30 May 2008 inclusive and
after this date, at United Nations Headquarters in New York until 30 June 2009 inclusive.
3. This Protocol shall be subject to ratification by signatory States and open for accession by
non-signatory States, referred to in paragraph 1 of this article, which are Parties to the
Convention.
4. Such States as may participate in certain activities of the Economic Commission for
Europe in accordance with paragraph 11 of the Commission’s terms of reference and which have
acceded to the Convention may become Parties to this Protocol by acceding thereto after its entry
into force.
5. Ratification or accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument with the
Secretary-General of the United Nations.
6. Any instrument of ratification or accession, deposited after the entry into force of an
amendment to this Protocol adopted in accordance with the provisions of Article 13 hereafter,
shall be deemed to apply to the Protocol as modified by the amendment.
Article 8
Entry into force
1. This Protocol shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after five of the States referred to
in article 7, paragraph 3, of this Protocol, have deposited their instruments of ratification or
accession.
2. For any State ratifying or acceding to it after five States have deposited their instruments of
ratification or accession, this Protocol shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the said
State has deposited its instrument of ratification or accession.
Article 9
Denunciation
1. Any Party may denounce this Protocol by so notifying the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.
2. Denunciation shall take effect 12 months after the date of receipt by the Secretary-General
of the notification of denunciation.
3. Any State which ceases to be Party to the Convention shall on the same date cease to be
Party to this Protocol.
Article 10
Termination
If, after the entry into force of this Protocol, the number of Parties is reduced, as a result of
denunciations, to less than five, this Protocol shall cease to be in force from the date on which
the last of such denunciations takes effect. It shall also cease to be in force from the date on
which the Convention ceases to be in force.
Article 11
Dispute
Any dispute between two or more Parties relating to the interpretation or application of this
Protocol which the Parties are unable to settle by negotiation or other means may, at the request
of any one of the Parties concerned, be referred for settlement to the International Court of
Justice.
Technical
Article 12
Reservations
1. Any State may, at the time of signing, ratifying, or acceding to this Protocol, declare by a
notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations that it does not consider
itself bound by article 11 of this Protocol. Other Parties shall not be bound by article 11 of this
Protocol in respect of any Party which has entered such a reservation.
2. The declaration referred to in paragraph 1 of this article may be withdrawn at any time by a
notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
3. No other reservation to this Protocol shall be permitted.
Article 13
Amendments
1. Once this Protocol is in force, it may be amended according to the procedure defined in
this article.
2. Any proposed amendment to this Protocol presented by a Party to this Protocol shall be
submitted to the Working Party on Road Transport of the United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe (UNECE) for consideration and decision.
3. The Parties to this Protocol shall make all possible efforts to achieve consensus. If, despite
these efforts, consensus is not reached on the proposed amendment, it shall require, as a last
resort, for adoption a two-thirds majority of Parties present and voting. A proposed amendment
adopted either by consensus or by a two-thirds majority of Parties shall be submitted by the
secretariat of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe to the Secretary-General to
be circulated for acceptance to all Parties to this Protocol, as well as to signatory States.
4. Within a period of nine months from the date on which the proposed amendment is
communicated by the Secretary-General, any Party may inform the Secretary-General that it has
an objection to the amendment proposed.
5. The proposed amendment shall be deemed to have been accepted if, by the end of the
period of nine months foreseen in the preceding paragraph, no objection has been notified by a
Party to this Protocol. If an objection is stated, the proposed amendment shall be of no effect.
6. In the case of a country which becomes a Contracting Party to this Protocol between the
moment of notification of a proposal for amendment and the end of the nine-month period
foreseen in paragraph 4 of this article, the secretariat of the Working Party on Road Transport of
the Economic Commission for Europe shall notify the new State Party about the proposed
amendment as soon as possible. The latter may inform the Secretary-General before the end of
this period of nine months that it has an objection to the proposed amendment.
7. The Secretary-General shall notify, as soon as possible, all the Parties of objections raised
in accordance with paragraphs 4 and 6 of this Article as well as of any amendment accepted
according to paragraph 5 above.
8. Any amendment deemed to have been accepted shall enter into force six months after the
date of notification of such acceptance by the Secretary-General to Parties.
Article 14
Convening of a diplomatic conference
1. Once this Protocol is in force, any Party may, by notification to the Secretary-General of
the United Nations, request that a conference be convened for the purpose of reviewing this
Protocol. The Secretary-General shall notify all Parties of the request and a review conference
shall be convened by the Secretary-General if, within a period of four months following the date
of notification by the Secretary-General, not less than one fourth of the Parties to this Protocol
notify him of their concurrence with the request.
2. If a conference is convened in accordance with the preceding paragraph, the SecretaryGeneral
shall notify all the Parties and invite them to submit within a period of three months
such proposals as they may wish the Conference to consider. The Secretary-General shall
circulate to all Parties the provisional agenda for the Conference together with the texts of such
proposals at least three months before the date on which the Conference is to meet.
3. The Secretary-General shall invite to any conference convened in accordance with this
article all States referred to in Article 7, paragraphs 1, 3 and 4, of this Protocol.
Article 15
Notifications to States
In addition to the notifications provided for in Articles 13 and 14, the Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall notify the States referred to in Article 7, paragraph 1, above, and the
States which have become Parties to this Protocol in accordance with paragraphs 3 and 4 of
Article 7, of:
(a) Ratifications and accessions under Article 7;
(b) The dates of entry into force of this Protocol in accordance with Article 8;
(c) Denunciations under Article 9;
(d) The termination of this Protocol in accordance with article 10;
(e) Declarations and notifications received in accordance with Article 12, paragraphs 1
and 2.
Article 16
Depositary
The original of this Protocol shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations, who shall send certified true copies thereof to all the States referred to Article 7,
paragraphs 1, 3 and 4, of this Protocol.
DONE at Geneva, this twentieth day of February two thousand and eight, in a single copy in the
English and French languages, each text being equally authentic.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed this
Protocol:
Legal instruments in the field of transport
Additional Protocol to the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR) concerning the Electronic Consignment Note
Geneva, 27 May 2008
Entry into force: 5 June 2011, in accordance with article 8(1) which reads as follows: “1. This Protocol shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after five of the States referred to in article 7, paragraph 3, of this Protocol, have deposited their instruments of ratification or accession.
Status: Signatories: 8, Parties 13.
Text: Doc. ECE/TRANS/200, Annex V.
Note: The Protocol was adopted by the Inland Transport Committee of the Economic Commission for Europe at its 70th session held at Geneva from 19 – 21 February 2008.
Participant Signature Ratification, Accession (a)
Belgium 27 May 2008
Bulgaria 24 September 2010 a
Czech Republic 14 April 2011 a
Denmark 28 June 2013 a
Estonia 2 November 2016 a
Finland 27 May 2008
France 5 October 2016 a
Iran (Islamic Republic of) 8 November 2017 a
Latvia 27 May 2008 3 February 2010
Lithuania 27 May 2008 7 March 2011
Netherlands 28 May 2008 7 January 2009
Norway 27 May 2008
Slovakia 21 February 2014 a
Slovenia 15 August 2017 a
Spain 11 May 2011 a
Sweden 27 May 2008
Switzerland 27 May 2008 26 January 2009
For additional information, including reservations, declarations and notes, please visit the UN Treaty Website: STATUS OF