Truck detention time in Europe: waiting charges and compensation rules by country

Truck detention time compensation in Europe is the money a carrier can claim when a vehicle waits too long to load or unload, and unlike the flat "detention pay" model common in the United States, it is governed country by country rather than by one shared rate. In Spain, for example, the threshold for claiming waiting-time compensation was cut from two hours to one hour under Law 15/2009 Article 22, as amended by Royal Decree-Law 3/2022 and in force since 2022-09-02 ( IRU ). This guide explains what detention time means in European road freight, how it differs from demurrage, what the CMR Convention does and does not cover, and how the rules compare across Spain, Italy, Germany, and France, so a carrier or dispatcher knows exactly when a claim is due and how to prove it.

What is truck detention time (waiting time) in European road freight?

Detention time, more often called waiting time in Europe, is the period a vehicle and its driver sit idle at a loading or unloading site beyond the time the parties agreed for the operation. It starts when the HGV (heavy goods vehicle over 3.5 tonnes) is made available at the dock and the responsibility for the delay sits with the shipper or consignee, not the carrier. Under EU working-time rules, this idle period is not free time for the driver: Your Europe , the European Commission's official portal, confirms that periods spent waiting at loading or unloading count as working time when the worker must remain at the vehicle.

That distinction matters commercially. A truck stuck at a dock is not earning on the next job, and the driver's remaining daily driving hours are burning down. Waiting-time compensation exists to move that cost back to the party who caused it. The trigger, the grace period, and the hourly rate all depend on national law and on the contract, which is why a claim that would be automatic in Italy may need a court in Germany.

How is detention time different from demurrage in road freight?

The word demurrage causes constant confusion because it is used in two modes. In ocean and container shipping, demurrage is the fee charged when a container sits inside a port beyond its free days. In road freight, the same idea appears as Standgeld in Germany or indennità di sosta in Italy, and it refers to a truck waiting at a dock, not a box sitting in a yard.

For clarity in this guide, treat detention, waiting time, and road-freight demurrage as the same operational event: an HGV kept idle beyond the agreed window. What changes is the legal label and the compensation formula in each country. Do not confuse it with container demurrage, which follows separate terminal tariffs and is the wrong framework for a road carrier's claim.

What does the CMR Convention say about loading, unloading, and waiting time?

The CMR Convention (the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road, 1956, as amended) is the shared legal backbone for cross-border road freight across almost all of Europe. Its most cited clause, Article 17, makes the carrier liable for loss, damage, or delay in delivery of the goods during the period between taking over the load and delivering it, and that liability is mandatory, meaning a contract clause that tries to reduce it is void ( law-experts.at ).

How much compensation can carriers claim for waiting time, country by country?

There is no single European waiting-time tariff. Each country sets its own grace period, its own trigger, and its own rate, and some rely on case law rather than a fixed figure. The table below lines up the four largest continental freight markets so a dispatcher can see the differences at a glance. Rates and thresholds are the commonly cited figures as of 2026 and should always be checked against the current contract.

Two patterns stand out. First, the southern markets have moved to hard, automatic triggers: Italy in particular treats the EUR 100 as due in full even for a partial hour. Second, Germany deliberately leaves the rate to negotiation and the courts, so documentation, rather than a statute, decides whether a claim succeeds.

What are the waiting-time rules in Spain, Italy, Germany, and France?

Spain: the one-hour paralización rule

Spain uses the term paralización (the stoppage or immobilisation of the vehicle for reasons outside the carrier's control). Under Law 15/2009 Article 22, once the truck has waited more than one hour from the time it was made available, the carrier may demand compensation from the shipper for each hour of stoppage, up to a maximum of 10 hours per day ( IRU ). Royal Decree-Law 3/2022 cut the threshold from two hours to one and, in the same reform, banned drivers from participating in loading and unloading in many cases, sharpening the line between driving work and dock work.

Italy: 90 minutes free, then EUR 100 per hour

Italy has the clearest and most aggressive rule in the group. After a 90-minute grace period per operation, measured from the vehicle's arrival, the customer owes the haulier EUR 100 for every hour or fraction of an hour of further waiting, and the charge is mandatory rather than a matter for negotiation ( Maersk ). The 90 minutes covers waiting only, not the loading or unloading work itself, and the figure is re-evaluated each year against the ISTAT index ( trans.info ).

Germany: Standgeld left to the courts

Germany relies on Section 412(3) of the Commercial Code (HGB), which grants the carrier a claim to Standgeld (demurrage, the compensation for excess waiting) when loading or unloading runs beyond the agreed window for reasons outside the carrier's risk area ( HGB Section 412 ). The law does not set a rate. German courts have generally treated EUR 50 to EUR 70 per hour as an appropriate figure, a range confirmed by German transport-law specialists ( Grau Rechtsanwälte ). Because the amount is judged case by case, a German claim lives or dies on evidence.

France: the standard contract and immobilisation fees

France works through the contrat type, the standard transport contract in the Code des transports that applies when the parties have not agreed their own terms. Updated by decree 2017-461, it grants tiered waiting-time allowances of roughly one to three hours depending on whether a fixed appointment, a time window, or no appointment at all was arranged. Beyond that allowance, the carrier bills an immobilisation fee for the vehicle and crew separately from the freight charge ( Légifrance ). The system is contractual and formula-driven rather than a single national rate.

Why are truck drivers banned from loading and unloading in some EU countries?

Spain's Royal Decree-Law 3/2022 did not only cut the compensation threshold; it also restricted drivers from taking part in loading and unloading operations for most goods, with limited exceptions. The logic is twofold. It keeps the driver's paid, regulated driving hours separate from unpaid dock labour, and it protects driver health and safety around heavy handling. The same reform tightened waiting-time compensation precisely because, once the driver is not permitted to help, any delay at the dock is unambiguously the site's responsibility.

This connects directly to detention costs. When a driver may not lift a finger to speed up the operation, every extra minute is chargeable waiting time, and the burden to run an efficient dock shifts onto the shipper. Carriers running into Spain should brief drivers on the ban so nobody undermines a future claim by helping voluntarily. For an overview of driver rights and duties across borders, the Logifie FAQ hub is a useful starting point.

How can carriers document and enforce a waiting-time claim?

Across every country in the table, the deciding factor is proof. A claim in Italy or Spain is far stronger, and a discretionary Standgeld claim in Germany is often only winnable, when the carrier can show three things: the exact arrival time at the site, the exact time the operation finished or the vehicle was released, and that the delay was not the carrier's fault. Verbal accounts and hand-written notes are routinely disputed. Industry commentary suggests the large majority of carriers who are entitled to these fees still fail to collect them, and weak documentation is the usual reason, so this is where most of the money is lost. Treat that figure as an estimate rather than a hard statistic, but the direction is not in doubt.

• Log a timestamped arrival the moment the HGV reaches the gate.
• Capture the release time the same way, immediately when the vehicle is cleared to leave.
• Keep a dated record of the agreed slot so any deviation is provable.

A dispatcher with real-time shipment tracking can produce an independent, system-generated arrival time at the dock rather than relying on the driver's word. A driver app that timestamps arrival and departure and photographs the loading bay, such as the Logifie driver assistant , turns a disputed account into a documented one. Keeping every job's timeline in one place also makes repeat-offender sites visible, so they can be repriced or renegotiated. For more explainers on European road freight, browse the Logifie blog .

How can technology reduce detention time and disputed claims?

Documentation wins claims, but the better outcome is fewer delays in the first place. Detention is a scheduling problem before it is a legal one, and fleet visibility is what shrinks it. When a dispatcher can see live ETAs, they can sequence dock appointments so trucks are not stacking up, warn a warehouse before a vehicle arrives, and reroute the next job while a truck is still waiting.

A transport management system that timestamps every arrival and departure gives two benefits at once. Operationally, it flags the sites and lanes where waiting time is eroding margin, so planners can add buffer or move volume. Commercially, the same timestamped logs are exactly the dispute-proof evidence a Spanish paralización claim or a German Standgeld claim needs. The goal is not to bill more detention; it is to wait less and make the unavoidable waiting recoverable.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between detention and demurrage in road freight?

In road freight the two terms describe the same event: a truck kept waiting at a loading or unloading site beyond the agreed time. Demurrage is the older term, appearing as Standgeld in Germany, while detention or waiting time is more common in English. Container demurrage in ocean shipping is a separate concept about boxes sitting in a port, so do not apply that framework to a road carrier's claim.

How long can a truck wait before a carrier can charge in Europe?

It depends on the country. Spain allows a one-hour grace period from vehicle availability, Italy allows 90 minutes per operation, and France grants a tiered allowance of roughly one to three hours through its standard contract. Germany ties the grace period to the agreed loading and unloading window rather than a fixed figure. Always check the specific contract, because agreed terms can override the default.

Does the CMR Convention set a waiting-time compensation rate?

No. The CMR Convention, and its Article 17 in particular, defines the carrier's liability for loss, damage, and delay between taking over and delivering the goods, and it makes that liability mandatory. It does not fix a euros-per-hour waiting-time rate. The actual grace period and rate come from national law, such as Spain's Law 15/2009 or Italy's Law 105/2025, or from the transport contract.

How much is truck waiting-time compensation in Italy?

Italy charges EUR 100 for every hour or part of an hour of waiting beyond a 90-minute grace period per operation, measured from the vehicle's arrival. The charge is mandatory and cannot be negotiated away, and it is due in full even if the extra wait is under an hour. The amount is re-evaluated annually against the ISTAT price index.

Can a carrier claim waiting time under German law?

Yes. Section 412(3) of the German Commercial Code (HGB) gives the carrier a right to Standgeld when loading or unloading exceeds the agreed window for reasons outside the carrier's control. The law does not set a rate, and German courts have commonly treated EUR 50 to EUR 70 per hour as appropriate. Because the amount is decided case by case, timestamped evidence of arrival and release is essential.

Why can drivers not help with loading in Spain?

Spain's Royal Decree-Law 3/2022 restricts drivers from participating in loading and unloading for most goods to separate regulated driving work from unpaid dock labour and to protect driver safety. A practical side effect is that any delay at the dock becomes clearly the site's responsibility, which strengthens the carrier's waiting-time claim. Drivers should avoid volunteering to help, as it can weaken a later claim.

What evidence do I need to win a detention claim?

You need the exact arrival time at the site, the exact release or completion time, and proof that the delay was not the carrier's fault. Timestamped tracking data, a driver-app log with arrival and departure entries, photographs of the loading bay, and the agreed appointment record together form a strong file. System-generated timestamps are far harder to dispute than hand-written notes.

Waiting time is one of the quietest drains on a European carrier's margin, and it is also one of the most recoverable once every arrival and departure is timestamped and the right national rule is applied. Build a waiting-time-aware freight plan that prices dock delay into the lane from the start: get a Logifie freight quote and put timestamped, dispute-proof detention data at the centre of your next European shipment.