Dualizm odpowiedzialności przewoźników w przewozach kabotażowych
Duality of carriers’ liability in cabotage operations

Summary/Abstract: The subject of this article is an attempt to present the problem of proper performance of an international contract of carriage of goods by cabotage on the basis of regulations common to all Member States of the European Union which are parties to the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR), but which do not operate as a European entity. However, the subject of the study itself oscillates around a number of legal aspects that relate to the operation of freight cabotage and the liability that this entails. The issues of performance of an international cabotage contract are so crucial, that they may involve duel liability for many hauliers. On the one hand, it is civil liability for not performing the transport contract on time and, on the other hand, it may give rise to liability for committing offences during its execution. Interestingly, the answer to the question of who is responsible for committing them is not clear. There is no doubt that the consequences of failure to perform the transport contract on time are borne by the carrier, however, the responsibility for the traffic offences committed lies with the driver (employed by the carrier), who performs it on the orders of his employer. In extreme cases, this liability may be imposed only on the carrier, who is at the same time the owner of the transport company, as well as the driver performing the transport service, which in Polish conditions is not an uncommon case. The basis for this duality of liability of a transport undertaking performing cabotage transport is provided for both in the national law with regard to foreign hauliers and in international law with regard to national hauliers performing cabotage transport outside their home coutnry. For the most part, however, it is the case that the administrative and police authorities of European countries impose various types of penalties, making it very difficult to provide this type of service within the European Union. The present study aims at indicating only certain aspects of the interpretation of EU rules in the context of national rules, aimed at avoiding liability for drivers when performing cabotage services within the European transport space.

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