Did you know that the UK has 325,000 importers and 144,000 exporters? 

These traders must comply with several formalities, including preparing the CMR consignment note for transporting goods via road.

It is a formal document with the consignment details, like the sender’s information, content type, the amount due, and more. 

Many countries use this system as part of their legal requirements. Also, it helps them maintain trading compliance and consistency. 

But preparing and shipping CMR consignment notes can be hectic.

Hence, you may need to outsource this task to an automated print and mail company like PostGrid! 

Our API lets you do everything online, helping you maintain quality and send your consignment notes on time. 

This blog covers more details about what consignment notes mean and the details they carry. Also, we will discuss who sends these documents and how to automate the printing and shipping processes. 

Let us dive in!

Haulage companies or carriers need the CMR consignment note to transport goods from one member country (also known as a CMR-ratified country) to another. It is essential to transport all general and hazardous orders.

Please note that you only need it when transporting consignments via road.

However, some orders may not need this document if you only need to transport a few items, including hazardous waste and radioactive goods. Hence, issuing and using consignment notes depends on the volume, location, transportation type, and other factors.

You can integrate PostGrid’s print and mail API into your order management software to prepare and distribute your CMR consignment notes to the correct recipients.

It simplifies the process and helps you save time and money. Also, it eliminates the extra legwork, freeing up your schedule to focus on your work.

Only eight countries implemented the CMR system in the beginning. However, it gained popularity in 2008 with the introduction of the eCMR. The UN says that at least 29 countries have started using eCMR since 2011.

Though the CMR consignment note is a European initiative, Russia and other Central Asian countries have also signed on to implement the system.

The EU nations use hundreds of millions of eCMRs annually for cross-country transportation. This system has helped them facilitate trading, improve relationships, and grow revenue!

The CMR-ratified countries in Europe and Central Asia include:

• Denmark
• Spain
• France
• Switzerland
• Portugal
• Ukraine
• The Netherlands
• Tajikistan
• Uzbekistan
• Iran

Luckily, PostGrid’s print and mail automation services help clients across 245+ countries globally! You may use our online solutions to send your CMR consignment notes anywhere you want.

Many traders may think, “Why bother?” when they first learn about the CMR system. 

Its purpose remains unclear to many, but it is crucial to safeguard your consignments and prepare yourself to face losses or damages (if any). 

The CMR consignment note has two purposes:

1. It is a carriage contract that assigns liability to whoever is responsible for handling and transporting the goods. Hence, it protects other parties from facing trouble and paying for damages if this party does something that causes a loss. 
2. It indicates the compensation the consignor or consignee must pay to cover the losses. For example, it lists who is accountable in unpredictable situations like road accidents or theft.

The best part about these notes is that they are quadruplicated. Many of our clients ask us—How many copies of the CMR consignment note are required?

And the answer is four! The trader or consignor keeps one copy. All the remaining sheets stay with the carrier, the consignee, and the administration. 

The haulage companies have multiple consignment note copies for every stakeholder, making it easy for everyone to follow the same rules. 

All CMR consignment note colours are different at the edges. The sender gets the red issue, while the consignee, carrier, and administration receive blue, green, and black-coloured copies, respectively.

These consignment notes protect the interests of the sender and receiver. They can claim compensation from the transport company if the goods are lost or damaged in transit. It serves as an insurance statement for them!

But you must prepare and ship these documents to all the parties at the correct time. We understand it may be challenging because you have many tasks to manage before exporting your consignments.

Hence, our print and mail API helps you automate this task and improve internal efficiency.

The CMR consignment notes must have ten mandatory fields. Inaccurate details can cause unnecessary transportation delays and other issues.

Also, senders may need to pay monetary penalties for sending their consignments with documents that contain incorrect information.

Here’s everything you must mention in your CMR consignment note:

1. Add the consignor’s or their designated signatories’ official sign and signature. The note must also include the accurate location and date. It helps give the authorities a clear idea about the sender’s operating place and on which day they issued the document. 
2. Write the sender’s or consignor’s full name and address. 
3. Also, write the transporter’s full name and address. You can also mention the carrier’s details whom you have assigned to transport the goods. 
4. The buyer’s or consignee’s full name and address to whom you want to export the goods in another country. It can be different from the delivery location. 
5. Mention the confirmed delivery location, like a warehouse, distribution centre, or factory. You can include any place in the CMR consignment note, irrespective of what you wrote in the receipt. 
6. Add the total number of boxes, packets, or cartons in the consignment. It enables road transportation officials to cross-check the goods at the borders. 
7. Include general descriptions of the items in every packet or carton that give adequate information about its contents. 
8. Write the dimensions and weight of every line item underneath the description and quantity. Keep it short and clear to help someone understand the details at a glance. 
9. Mention the transportation fees with the additional charges. Usually, the consignor or consignee pays this charge, which includes customs duties and other costs. To avoid confusion, make sure your CMR consignment notes state payment details.
10. Add an expressed clause indicating that the CMR consignment note includes the carriage. You may use a template to write the correct statement. It signifies that the CMR is subject to guidelines in the Convention of the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods.
11. Also, add a statement denying trans-shipment. It helps you prevent the carrier from transporting your goods from one place to another without your consent. Also, it protects you from fraud and other issues. 
12. The documents list that you hand over to your carrier for their journey. 
13. A specified time frame within which the carrier must complete the transportation.  

The last three points are optional to mention in your CMR consignment note, but they help add more value to it. 

You can upload your consignment note template to our platform to auto-fill and customise it. Or use our template editor to draft a new document according to your needs. 

The eCMR is the digital version of paper-based consignment notes. Some also refer to it as the e-protocol.

You may use it when you don’t want to manage the 4-part hard copies or want to store online records. 

The transport company or the consignor can issue the eCMR online and share it with other stakeholders. Many companies use eCMR because it is easier to receive and restore it. 

However many traders and transportation companies prefer paper-based CMR consignment notes for better usage. Drivers who are used to using physical documents say they are better than the digital versions because they can show them to the authorities without using their phones.

Also, the increasing complaints from carriers about specific European parts not having strong mobile networks make physical CMR consignment notes the better choice.

These places also don’t have 3G or 4G data signals, making it hard to access the eCMR whenever needed. 

Many traders and carriage companies provide the 4-part paper-based documents to their drivers to guarantee they get the signatures even when they have poor mobile signals. 

You may also use the eCMR version for storing official records. PostGrid’s print and mail solutions help you access information about your sent mailers and past orders.

Hence, you can track the documents you send and store the details as shipping evidence!

No. You don’t need to draft and use the CMR consignment notes for local and domestic transportation.

Traders must only use them for importing and exporting goods across CMR-ratified nations. Hence, look up details about your origin and destination countries before you dive into preparing and shipping CMR delivery notes. 

However, please remember that you must follow local, regional, and national laws to transport goods from one city or state to another.

The seller or consignor must prepare or issue the CMR consignment note to other parties. You may hire a forwarder to draft this delivery document legally on your behalf for a fee.

But please ensure you mention the correct sender’s details when passing on the information to a third party to create the consignment note.

The forwarder helps you legally cross-check the accuracy of your declaration to avoid errors and other issues.

They review all the details you mention on the note, including the package contents, consignee’s details, delivery location, and other elements.

Also, the forwarder can formally draft their remarks by adding them to the “reservations” section on the CMR consignment note for future reference.

They must ensure the consignor signs the form before forwarding it to other stakeholders to safeguard them. 

Forwarders must issue the CMR delivery notes before the transport company starts its carriage journey. They must ensure the consignee and the carrier have copies to prevent trouble.

PostGrid offers automated mailing solutions to allow companies to send marketing, compliance, and transactional documents online. They can set up an account with us and launch print and mail campaigns whenever needed at affordable rates.

Verify Your Mailing Lists

You may need to send your CMR consignment notes to many people or organisations. Also, ensuring they reach the correct destinations on time is crucial.

Hence, you cannot afford to ship your mailers to invalid or undeliverable mailing lists. PostGrid enables businesses to validate and standardise their delivery addresses to guarantee their documents reach the right hands.

It helps them prevent mail returns and lost items, cutting unnecessary expenses and manual work.

2-Business Day SLA

PostGrid provides a 2-business day SLA, letting you create and print your CMR consignment notes quickly and easily. It helps you send timely mailers without having your staff work round the clock or face delivery delays.

You can also schedule your mailings for a specific date if you want to send your items later but don’t want the burden of remembering dates.

The process is straightforward and quick, helping you adopt a set-it-and-forget-it approach. It gives you more time to handle other tasks than focusing on whether your staff sent the CMR consignment notes on time.

GDPR Compliance

Ensure end-to-end GDPR compliance when mailing your consignment notes with PostGrid. We strive to secure your data records and privacy throughout the process.

PostGrid complies with GDPR and all necessary national and international data security requirements. You can print and mail your items confidently with our safe automated solutions.

Also, our print and distribution partners comply with GDPR and follow many security measures when handling your CMR consignment notes and other mailers.

Certificate of Posting

Store evidence that you shipped your CMR waybill to the correct recipients using the Royal Mail Certificate of Posting.

PostGrid lets you choose from many postal delivery options, like 1st Class, 2nd Class, and others. You can also select Express shipping to mail your consignment notes urgently.

Flexible Pricing

Our print and mail automation rates are the lowest in the UK. You can select a package that best suits your needs and budget.

PostGrid works with many commercial printers, helping you get the best printing prices. Also, we help you presort your CMR consignment notes beforehand to seek attractive postal discounts.

We don’t charge setup costs or hidden fees, enabling you to plan your mailing campaigns affordably.

You may contact us 24 x 7 to resolve your queries or get technical assistance.

We hope we answered all your questions about using CMR consignment notes for cross-country trading.

They are standard contracts that exporters and importers use to maintain efficiency and ensure everyone stays on the same page.

PostGrid’s print and mail API simplifies drafting, printing, and shipping your consignment notes and other documents.

It offers everything you need under one roof to streamline your tasks and cut manual effort.

Sign up for more details on how PostGrid allows you to draft and send CMR consignment notes effectively and affordably!