GlossaryEN1 min readUpdated: Jun 23, 2026

Combined Transport Liability Regimes

Combined transport liability regimes determine which legal rules apply – and to what financial extent – when goods are lost, damaged, or delayed during a multimodal shipment performed under a single contract.

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Last updated: 23 June 2026Published: 19 June 2025

Source: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:31992R0106

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Definition & Explanation

Combined transport liability regimes determine which legal rules apply – and to what financial extent – when goods are lost, damaged, or delayed during a multimodal shipment performed under a single contract. The core difficulty is legal fragmentation: CMR governs road legs, CIM applies to rail, and various national statutes cover inland waterways, each with different liability caps per kilogram of gross weight. Where damage can be localized to a specific leg, the convention for that mode typically applies; where the point of loss is unknown, contractual fallback provisions come into play, often leaving carriers and claimants in prolonged legal uncertainty. For freight forwarders, the exposure on a single shipment can vary considerably depending on where a loss occurs, with direct consequences for how they structure insurance cover and handle claims.

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Recommended format: Source: Freight Academy – Combined Transport Liability Regimes (https://www.freight-academy.com/en/glossary/combined-transport-liability-regimes), accessed 2026-10-05
APA style: Freight Academy Editorial Team. (2025). Combined Transport Liability Regimes. Freight Academy. https://www.freight-academy.com/en/glossary/combined-transport-liability-regimes
BibTeX: @misc{combinedtransportliability2025, title = {Combined Transport Liability Regimes}, author = {{Freight Academy Editorial Team}}, year = {2025}, url = {https://www.freight-academy.com/en/glossary/combined-transport-liability-regimes}, note = {Freight Academy, accessed 2026-10-05} }

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