New economic sustainability measures for carriage by road and air

Spain - 12 / 21 / 2022

For carriage of goods by road a written waybill will be mandatory which will have to have the stipulated minimum contents, including the price and costs of carriage, whereas for the carriage of goods by air specific measures are introduced for situations involving a public health emergency of international concern, among other new legislation.

Royal Decree-Law 14/2022 has introduced new amendments relating to carriage, especially in the field of carriage by road, following those made by Royal Decree-Law 3/2022 on measures to enhance sustainability in road freight transport and on the functioning of the logistics chain.

These amendments have introduced important new changes regarding the carriage of goods by road, in both the Carriage by Road Law (LOTT) and the Carriage of Goods by Road Contract Law (LCTTM). Notably:

The mandatory requirement for a written waybill and with minimum contents, including the price and costs of carriage under article 20 LCTTM (unless they appear in a contractual document), in contracts concluded with the effective carriers for shipments above 150 euros. It is further specified that the mentioned price and costs must cover the total individual effective costs incurred or assumed by the carrier to provide its service. To determine that amount, a new additional provision nine in the LCTTM specifies that it is allowed to use the cost structure in the road freight transport cost observatory prepared by the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (MITMA).
A number of clarifications are also introduced in relation to the general ban on drivers of vehicles with a maximum permissible laden weight above 7.5 tons taking part in loading and unloading operations. They are allowed to participate in the carriage of breakbulk freight, between the distribution center and the point of sale, packaging and any other similar services involving the collection or distribution of shipments of goods consisting of a small number of packages that can easily be handled by one person.

The law also introduced a number of direct support measures for road passenger and freight carriers due to the high dependence on the price of fuel of this strategic industry.

Lastly, in relation to carriage by air, specific measures are introduced for situations involving a public health emergency of international concern. Passengers must fulfill the specific requirements laid down for them by the health or other authorities present at the airport. They have an obligation to complete the health screening procedures laid down by the Health Ministry and to adopt the stipulated preventive measures. Among these measures, it is determined that the result obtained in the health screening procedures performed may give rise to an individual being denied access to airport infrastructure, denied boarding on an aircraft, or denied disembarkation from an aircraft after they have boarded.