Filling in the CMR consignment note, box by box.
The CMR consignment note travels with the goods in international road haulage. Below is what belongs in each box, which boxes are most often left empty, and what a driver should note down at loading.
What the consignment note is for
The CMR Convention governs the contract for the international carriage of goods by road. The consignment note is evidence of that contract and of the condition in which the goods were handed over.
Article 5 of the Convention provides for three original copies, signed by sender and carrier: the first for the sender, the second travels with the goods, the third is kept by the carrier. Many forms add a fourth copy for your own records.
Article 6(1) lists what must always be on it, Article 6(2) what must be on it where applicable, such as cash on delivery or an agreed delivery time. Each box below says which of the two; the rest is supplementary. The statement that the carriage is subject to the Convention, also required, is pre-printed on most forms.
The parties and the route: boxes 1 to 5
1. Sender
Name, address and country of the party sending the goods. Required. That is the customer in the contract, not always the address where the goods are loaded.
2. Consignee
Name, address and country of the recipient. Required. Put the party that is to receive the goods, not the carrier or an intermediary.
3. Place of delivery
Place and country where the goods are delivered. Required. A full address avoids arguments when the unloading address differs from the one in box 2.
4. Place and date of taking over
Where and when the carrier takes over the goods: the loading address and the loading date. Required.
5. Documents attached
Documents handed to the carrier, such as a packing list, a commercial invoice or customs papers. Only if something is actually attached, and then required.
The goods: boxes 6 to 12
These boxes sit side by side per line of goods. With several kinds of cargo, each kind gets its own line.
6. Marks and numbers
What is on the packages to identify them: marks, numbers, a reference or the seal number. Required.
7. Number of packages
The number of pallets, boxes or other units. Required, and the figure the driver counts at loading.
8. Method of packing
Pallet, box, crate, bag, bulk. Required.
9. Nature of the goods
A common description of the cargo. Required. For dangerous goods, the usual name with class and UN number goes here; those two always belong together.
10. Statistical number
A commodity code for statistics, if the sender provides one. Often empty.
11. Gross weight in kg
The total weight including packaging. Required, or another statement of the quantity.
12. Volume in m³
The volume, if it matters for the freight or the load factor.
Instructions and agreements: boxes 13 to 20
Forms from different printers sometimes differ in this part, especially in boxes 13 to 15. Go by the headings on your own form.
13. Sender's instructions
The instructions needed for customs and other formalities; required whenever there are formalities. Besides that, instructions for the journey, such as a temperature or a delivery time window.
14. Directions as to payment for carriage
Who pays the freight: carriage paid (the sender) or carriage forward (the consignee). If the sender undertakes to pay charges, Article 6(2) requires it on the note.
15. Cash on delivery
An amount to be collected on delivery. Usually empty; if there is cash on delivery, required.
16. Carrier
Name, address and country of the carrier. Required. A stamp alone is not always legible; make sure the full address is there.
17. Successive carriers
If another carrier drives part of the route, such as a subcontractor: name and address.
18. Carrier's reservations and observations
What the driver sees at loading: damaged packaging, a different number of packages, wet or shifted cargo. See below why this box matters.
19. Special agreements
Agreements between sender and carrier that belong on the note. An agreed delivery time must be on it under Article 6(2).
20. To be paid by
Freight, surcharges, customs duties and other charges, and who pays them: sender or consignee. Required: Article 6(1) lists the charges relating to the carriage. In practice the box is still often left empty, because the note is also read by people who do not need to know the price. That is a habit, not an exception in the Convention.
Signing: boxes 21 to 24
21. Established in ... on ...
Place and date where the note was made out. Required, and both of them: a date without a place is a box that is half empty.
22. Signature and stamp of the sender
At loading, by or on behalf of the sender.
23. Signature and stamp of the carrier
At loading, by the driver on behalf of the carrier.
24. Goods received
On delivery: place, date, signature and stamp of the consignee. Any reservation by the recipient goes here too.
Many forms have further boxes below these, for the registration number among other things. Trajenda prints the registration of truck and trailer in box 25.
Box 18 is not there for show
Article 8 asks the carrier, on taking over the goods, to check the number of packages, their marks and numbers, and the apparent condition of the goods and their packaging. Anything that does not match belongs on the note as a reservation, with the reason.
Article 9(2) says what happens if that is not done: without a reasoned reservation, the goods and their packaging are presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been in good condition, and the number of packages, marks and numbers are presumed to match. An empty box 18 is therefore not a neutral box.
- Write down what you see, not what you think: "2 pallets with torn film, one box wet" instead of "damage".
- Note the number you count if it differs from box 7.
- A reservation the sender does not sign is still there; it just counts differently. So always have it written down.
The boxes most often left empty
- Box 21: a date, but no place.
- Box 16: only a name or a stamp, without a full address.
- Box 9 for dangerous goods: a class without a UN number, or the other way round.
- Box 18: empty, while the driver saw something at loading and only mentioned it in a chat message.
- Box 4: the loading address without a date, because the note was filled in the day before.
How Trajenda fills in the consignment note
In Trajenda you print the CMR consignment note from the trip, in fifteen languages. The boxes come from what is already in the trip: sender and consignee, loading and unloading address with date, the cargo per stop, the carrier from your company details, the registration from the linked vehicle.
If a detail that belongs on the note is missing, such as the place in box 21 or the UN number for dangerous goods, Trajenda tells you before printing which box it is and where to fill it in. Box 18 comes from what the driver records in the app at loading with "I see something", in the driver's own words; a planner does not retype it.
What Trajenda is not: an e-CMR. The paper consignment note is still needed, and the signatures in boxes 22 to 24 go on paper. The proof of delivery that the recipient signs on the driver's phone is a separate document next to the consignment note.
Not legal advice
This guide explains what is on the form and what the Convention says about it. It is not legal advice. In case of damage or a dispute, ask your insurer or a lawyer.
Stop retyping consignment notes.
Plan a trip in Trajenda and print the consignment note. Anything missing is pointed out before you print.