Generally after one year. For freight charges, the limitation period starts three months after the carriage contract was concluded, not when the invoice falls due: with a six-month payment term, it is already running long before you can send a reminder. A time-barred CMR claim cannot even be raised by counterclaim or defence, so decide when to sue by reference to the contract date, not payment reminders.
Long payment terms are common in international road carriage, and carriers accept them to retain business. Less widely known is that claims arising from such carriage have a shorter life than ordinary commercial claims. The CMR Convention regime applies instead of the Commercial Code’s four-year limitation period, with its own rules on calculating time and what suspends it. We discuss the general rules in when a claim becomes time-barred; here they apply only on a supplementary basis.
One year, calculated by reference to the contract
The Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR), promulgated here by Minister of Foreign Affairs Decree No. 11/1975 Coll., applies to carriage of goods by road vehicle for reward where the places of taking over and delivery are in two different countries, at least one of which is a contracting state. Under Article 32(1) of CMR, claims arising from such carriage become time-barred after one year; a three-year period applies only to wilful misconduct or fault regarded as equivalent under the law of the court. The starting point varies: for partial loss, damage or delay, it is the delivery date; for total loss, the thirtieth day after expiry of the agreed delivery period; and in all other cases, including the carrier’s claim for freight charges, three months after the carriage contract was concluded.
For the carrier, this produces uncomfortable arithmetic. Limitation of freight charges is not tied to the invoice due date: it is linked to the contract, so while you wait for payment under a six-month term, the time to sue is already being used up. A freight invoice therefore cannot be chased at the pace of ordinary debts, and the decision to sue must follow the contract date.
A written claim suspends time, but not for everyone
A written claim suspends the limitation period until the carrier rejects it in writing and returns the attached documents; a subsequent claim concerning the same matter does not suspend time again (Article 32(2) CMR). This rule is framed for claims made against the carrier, typically compensation for damage to goods or late delivery. Anyone relying on it must be able to prove receipt of the claim and the response: the burden rests on the person invoking those facts.
A carrier cannot assume that an ordinary reminder or a non-binding promise by the debtor suspends limitation. Article 32(3) CMR nevertheless refers other grounds for suspension and interruption to the law of the court hearing the case. A qualified acknowledgement of debt may therefore have effects under that law; not every email or promise automatically qualifies. Unless such a ground can be reliably established, the claim must be pursued in court in time. The consequences of limitation are also harsher than under domestic law, as time-barred claims cannot be raised even by counterclaim or defence (Article 32(4)). After a year, the usual manoeuvre of a customer deducting alleged damage from freight charges will therefore also fail.
Contractual penalties for delay in CMR carriage
Customers often seek to secure loading and unloading times through a contractual penalty for each hour or day of delay. For carriage governed by CMR, however, Article 41(1) applies: any provision directly or indirectly derogating from the Convention is null and void. The Convention itself regulates the consequences of delay: the right to compensation must be reserved in writing to the carrier within 21 days from the day the goods were placed at the consignee’s disposal (Article 30(3)), and the loss must be proved. A flat penalty bypassing those conditions derogates from the Convention, so courts generally treat it as invalid.
For carriers, this provides a defence against invoices reduced by delay penalties; for customers, it is a reminder that a penalty clause in a transport order may offer no support, and a delay claim must from the outset rely on a timely written reservation and proven loss.
How we can help
We recover freight charges, assess limitation and defend against penalties set off against payment through our freight charge recovery service. Before filing, we prepare a pre-action demand aligned with the Convention; for debtors abroad, we continue through cross-border debt recovery.
If almost a year has passed since the carriage contract was concluded, stop sending reminders and send us the invoice together with the order and consignment note.
This answer provides general information on the law as at 10 September 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.
