The hours a shipment loses are seldom lost on the road. They are lost at the delivery address. The vehicle arrives and the gate is shut. Or the gate is open but there is no forklift. Or there is a forklift, and the turn comes four hours late.
None of that is bad luck. Each is a question that could have been answered a week earlier.
Can the vehicle reach the address?
Across the European Union the maximum length of an articulated vehicle is 16.50 m under Directive 96/53/EC — tractor and trailer together. A narrow industrial-estate entrance or a town-centre warehouse may not accept it.
The question is not "what is the address" but "can the vehicle enter it and turn". If not: a smaller vehicle, or splitting the consignment at a transfer point. Both add cost and time, and both beat discovering the problem on delivery day.
Whose job is unloading?
That follows the delivery term. Under the Incoterms 2020 rules:
- Under DAP the seller brings the goods to the named place, but unloading belongs to the buyer.
- Under DPU the seller delivers the goods unloaded.
A one-word difference decides who finds a forklift — which is why we treat the delivery term as operational, not documentary.
The unloading method shapes the vehicle
| Method | Required | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Ramp | A height-matched dock | The fastest method |
| Forklift | Forklift and operator | Forks matched to the pallet |
| Crane | Crane and slinging gear | Heavy and bulky cargo |
| Side loading | Curtainsider, open flank | Long items |
| By hand | Labour and time | Carton-level, small volumes |
We need the unloading method before choosing the vehicle. Sending a box body to an address that unloads from the side serves nobody.
The appointment: who, when, which slot?
The hour is agreed between consignee and warehouse. The carrier keeps to it but cannot set it. Before departure, answer these:
- Who books the slot — consignor, consignee, or failing both, the carrier?
- Which date and time window?
- If the vehicle arrives early, where does it wait?
- If the slot is missed, when is the next one?
- Who meets the vehicle, and on what number?
The fifth is most often skipped. With no number to call on arrival, the waiting begins.
The driver's clock is a constraint too
The AETR rules cap driving at nine hours a day (ten twice a week), require a break of at least 45 minutes after 4.5 hours at the wheel, and 11 hours of rest at day's end. So even where the vehicle reaches the address, the driver's remaining hours may not stretch to completing the unload.
To confirm the day before
- Address and contact person verified?
- Appointment hour confirmed?
- Unloading equipment ready at the address?
- Is the person receiving the goods authorised to sign the CMR?
- Who is called if something is missing?
Answer those five the day before and delivery generally completes on time.
The CMR at the moment of delivery
Signature of the CMR by the consignee, once the goods are off, proves delivery took place. Where there is damage or a shortage, a reservation must be entered on the CMR at the moment of signature. Later notifications carry little evidential weight.
Conditions at the delivery address are part of the transport plan: we build unloading into full truckload transport and temporary storage and handling from the start. Send address and appointment details through the quote form.
