Railway Contract Law
The Uniform Rules (UR) of Appendices A, B, D and E concern
- the Contract of International Carriage of Passengers by Rail (CIV),
- the Contract of International Carriage of Goods by Rail (CIM),
- the Contract of use of vehicles in international rail traffic (CUV),
- the Contract of use of infrastructure in international rail traffic (CUI).
The Explanatory Report for each Appendix is under COTIF 1999.
The CIV and CIM UR apply to direct international rail contracts, generally irrespective of the system of lines entered. Passengers and goods therefore cross the Member States’ borders under the aegis of a single contract and uniform liability regime when they are carried by rail.
However, OTIF also promotes a multimodal approach, and in the multimodal transport scenario dealt with in Article 1 of the CIV UR (§§ 2 and 3) and the CIM UR (§§ 3 and 4) the Uniform Rules apply on the lines entered in these lists.
To enter new CIV and CIM maritime and inland waterway services:
Practical information: insert new CIV and CIM maritime and inland waterway services.
The CIV and CIM UR are the legal basis of the CIM and CIV model contracts established by the International Rail Transport Committee (CIT). With regard to CIM/SMGS transport and the common CIM/SMGS consignment note: CIM/SMGS leaflet published by CIT and OSJD (English/Russian/Chinese)
The CUV and CUI UR apply in international traffic to contracts of use of wagons (CUV) and to contracts of use of infrastructure (CUI), which are accessories to the contract of carriage.
The CUV UR are the legal basis of the General Contract of Use of Wagons (GCU). The GCU set out the rights and mutual obligations of wagon keepers (K) and railway undertakings (RU) when using wagons as a means of transport in Europe and beyond. At present, the GCU brings together 600 signatories in 20 countries.
Lastly, the CUI UR provide a framework for the development of general conditions for use of the infrastructure. CIT and RailNetEurope (RNE), with the support of CER, UIC and EIM, are working actively on the application of the European General Terms and Conditions of Use of Railway Infrastructure (E-GTC-I).
