TRW & Co · Energy, Infrastructure & Transport
Transport and Logistics Lawyers in London
Transport lawyers in London advise rail, bus, road haulage, logistics and aviation businesses on licensing, public contracts, terms of carriage and disputes. With rail moving into public ownership, the Bus Services Act 2025 in force and the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 regime approaching, transport contracts and regulation are being rewritten.
Key pointIn transport, short convention time limits decide many cargo claims: most CMR claims must be brought within one year, and the Montreal Convention extinguishes air carriage claims after two years. Diary the limit the day a loss is discovered.
At a glance
Operator licence for HGVs
Businesses using goods vehicles above 3.5 tonnes for trade generally need a restricted, standard national or standard international operator's licence from a traffic commissioner.
Bus Services Act 2025
Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 simplified franchising and removed the restriction on councils in England forming new municipal bus companies.
Rail public ownership
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 lets passenger services transfer to a public operator as contracts end, ahead of Great British Railways.
CMR liability cap
International road carriage under the CMR Convention caps carrier liability at 8.33 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram unless a higher value is declared.
Self-driving regime due
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 is being implemented through secondary legislation, with the full authorisation and operator licensing regime expected in 2027.
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What transport lawyers in London advise on
Transport lawyers in London advise the businesses and public bodies that move people and goods: rail operators and suppliers, bus companies and local transport authorities, road hauliers, freight forwarders and warehouse operators, airlines and airports, vehicle and technology developers, and the investors and lenders behind them. The work combines regulatory licensing, public contracts, commercial terms of carriage, asset finance and disputes.
Few sectors are changing as quickly. Passenger rail is moving into public ownership and towards Great British Railways under the Railways Bill, the Bus Services Act 2025 has widened local authority options for running buses, and the Automated Vehicles Act 2024 is being implemented for a regime expected in 2027. Each change rewrites contracts and creates opportunities for suppliers and investors.
TRW & Co advises transport and logistics businesses, suppliers to public transport programmes, investors and international shippers — including Bangladeshi exporters and their UK customers — on UK regulation and English-law contracts. Maritime matters are covered on our shipping and maritime page, and large projects on our infrastructure page.
The legal and regulatory framework
Each transport mode has its own statute and regulator, and much of the law depends on whether a journey is domestic or international. Transport policy is also partly devolved: Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements for buses, local rail services and roads, so check which government is responsible before relying on an English rule.
| Mode | Key legislation | Regulator or authority |
|---|---|---|
| Rail | Railways Act 1993; Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024; Railways Bill | Department for Transport, Office of Rail and Road, Network Rail and, in future, Great British Railways |
| Bus and coach | Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981; Transport Act 2000; Bus Services Act 2025 | Traffic commissioners, local transport authorities, Department for Transport |
| Road haulage | Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995; drivers’ hours and tachograph rules | Traffic commissioners and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency |
| International road carriage | Carriage of Goods by Road Act 1965 (giving effect to the CMR Convention) | Courts and arbitral tribunals applying the Convention |
| Aviation | Civil Aviation Act 1982; Air Navigation Order; Montreal Convention; retained passenger rights rules | Civil Aviation Authority and Department for Transport |
| Automated vehicles | Automated Vehicles Act 2024 | Secretary of State, with implementing regulations due |
Rail: public ownership and Great British Railways
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 allows passenger services in England to transfer to a public-sector operator as existing contracts end. South Western Railway was the first to move, in May 2025, and many other operators have followed.
The Railways Bill, introduced in November 2025 and progressing through Parliament during 2026, would create Great British Railways as a single body responsible for track and train, take over many functions currently exercised by the Office of Rail and Road and the Department for Transport, and reshape how access rights are allocated. Open-access operators, freight operators and rolling stock owners are watching closely how access and charging decisions will be made and challenged.
What this means for suppliers and investors
Contracts with train operators, Network Rail and future Great British Railways entities need assignment and novation clauses that survive restructuring. Rolling stock leases, maintenance agreements and technology contracts should be checked for change-of-control and termination rights triggered by a change in operator. Transport lawyers in London advising rail suppliers are focusing on these transfer provisions now, before the new structure is fixed.
Buses, road haulage and logistics
Bus services after the 2025 Act
The Bus Services Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025. It amends the franchising provisions in the Transport Act 2000 to make franchising simpler to adopt, allows direct awards to incumbent operators in some franchising transitions, strengthens enhanced partnerships, and removes the restriction on councils in England forming new municipal bus companies. Many provisions commence in stages.
For operators, franchising turns a commercial network into a contract with the authority, so tender terms, asset transfer, depot and fleet arrangements and TUPE become central. For authorities, procurement law and subsidy control apply; see our public procurement page.
Road haulage operator licensing
Businesses using goods vehicles above 3.5 tonnes for trade generally need an operator’s licence from one of the traffic commissioners. A restricted licence covers carrying your own goods; a standard national licence covers hire and reward in Great Britain; a standard international licence adds international journeys. Standard licences require good repute, financial standing and professional competence through a transport manager.
Traffic commissioners can call operators to a public inquiry and curtail, suspend or revoke a licence for maintenance, drivers’ hours or tachograph failings. The licence is the business, so a public inquiry deserves the same preparation as litigation.
Logistics and warehousing contracts
Most logistics disputes turn on contract terms: whether a freight forwarder acted as agent or as carrier, which standard trading conditions were incorporated, what limits of liability apply, and whether a lien over goods is valid. Domestic carriage typically runs on industry conditions, while international road carriage is governed mandatorily by the CMR Convention, which caps carrier liability for loss or damage at 8.33 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram of gross weight and sets a one-year time limit for most claims.
| Leg of the journey | Governing regime | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Domestic road carriage in Great Britain | The contract, usually incorporating industry or carrier standard conditions | Incorporation, liability cap per tonne, notice and claim time limits |
| International road carriage | CMR Convention, applied mandatorily | Consignment note, declared value, one-year time limit |
| Air carriage | Montreal Convention for most international carriage | Air waybill, written complaint deadlines, two-year limit |
| Sea carriage | Hague-Visby Rules under the bill of lading | See our shipping page for time bars and limits |
| Warehousing and handling | The contract and the general law of bailment | Lien rights, exclusion clauses and insurance responsibility |
The practical lesson is that one shipment can pass through several regimes, each with its own cap and deadline. Transport lawyers in London usually start a cargo claim by identifying where the loss occurred, because that determines which rules govern recovery and against whom.
Ports, terminals and rail freight
Most UK ports are privately owned or run by trusts, and many have statutory harbour authority powers under the Harbours Act 1964 and their own local Acts or harbour orders. Port development is guided by the National Policy Statement for Ports, and large schemes may need development consent. Terminal operators, rail freight operators and logistics park developers negotiate long-term leases, access and throughput agreements whose minimum volume commitments, exclusivity and pricing review clauses deserve careful drafting.
Aviation, automated vehicles and new mobility
Aviation
Airlines need an operating licence and air operator certificate from the Civil Aviation Authority, and airports, ground handlers and air traffic service providers each have their own regulatory requirements. Commercial work centres on aircraft leasing and finance, slot transactions, ground handling and fuel supply agreements, and passenger and cargo liability under the Montreal Convention. Aircraft financing relies heavily on the Cape Town Convention; our asset finance team advises lessors and lenders.
Passenger rights for delay, cancellation and denied boarding continue to apply in the UK through retained rules, enforced by the Civil Aviation Authority and through the courts and approved dispute resolution schemes. Airlines and travel businesses should make sure their conditions of carriage and complaint handling reflect those rights, because systemic failures attract regulatory attention as well as individual claims. Transport lawyers in London also advise on airport charges, ground handling and fuel supply agreements, where service levels and liability caps drive the commercial bargain.
Automated vehicles
The Automated Vehicles Act 2024 received Royal Assent on 20 May 2024 and is being implemented through secondary legislation, with the full regime expected in 2027. It introduces an authorised self-driving entity responsible for how an authorised vehicle drives, a user-in-charge who is not liable for the driving while the self-driving feature is engaged, and licensed no-user-in-charge operators for vehicles that run without anyone in a position to drive.
Developers, fleet operators and insurers should plan for authorisation, operator licensing, data and incident reporting obligations, and the interaction with motor insurance. Transport lawyers in London advising on pilots are also looking at liability allocation between developers, operators and the authorities hosting services.
In transport, the licence is the business. A public inquiry, an authorisation refusal or a lost access right can stop operations faster than any commercial dispute.
How a transport contract or regulatory matter typically runs
- Identify the regime. Confirm the mode, whether carriage is domestic or international, which nation’s rules apply and which regulator is responsible.
- Check licences and permissions. Operator licences, air operator certificates, rail licences and access rights, and any authorisation needed for new technology.
- Review the contract chain. Map who contracts with whom, which terms of carriage or trading conditions apply, and how liability limits flow down.
- Allocate risk. Negotiate liability caps, insurance, delay and force majeure, change in law, indexation and transfer on restructuring.
- Bid or procure. For public contracts, follow the procurement procedure, prepare compliant tenders and monitor for challenge windows.
- Operate and comply. Maintain records for regulators, train staff on drivers’ hours or safety obligations, and track legislative change.
- Resolve disputes. Notify claims within contractual and convention time limits, preserve evidence and choose the right forum.
Documents and evidence to assemble
Transport lawyers in London will usually ask for the following when advising on a contract, a claim or a regulatory process.
- Operator licences, undertakings, conditions and any previous regulatory correspondence or warnings.
- Maintenance records, drivers’ hours and tachograph data, and transport manager records for haulage matters.
- Contracts of carriage, consignment notes, air waybills, warehouse receipts and the standard trading conditions relied on.
- Framework, franchise or concession agreements, access contracts and rolling stock or aircraft leases.
- Insurance policies, including goods-in-transit, liability and fleet cover.
- Tender documents, award notices and correspondence for public contracts.
- Incident reports, photographs, survey reports and claim notifications for loss, damage or delay claims.
Risks and common mistakes
Missing the time limit for a cargo claim
Carriage conventions impose short time limits. Under the CMR Convention most claims must be brought within one year, and the Montreal Convention extinguishes the right to damages for air carriage if proceedings are not brought within two years. Domestic standard conditions often require written notice of loss or damage within days and proceedings within a short period. Shippers and their insurers sometimes spend months negotiating and lose the claim to time. Diary the limits as soon as a loss is discovered and obtain an extension in writing if negotiations continue.
Assuming your trading conditions were incorporated
Freight forwarders and hauliers often rely on standard conditions printed on quotes or websites, but incorporation depends on how and when the terms were brought to the customer’s attention and whether a course of dealing exists. If the conditions are not part of the contract, liability limits, lien rights and time bars can fall away. Make sure terms are referred to clearly in quotations and booking confirmations, and that onerous clauses are specifically highlighted.
Treating a public inquiry as an administrative formality
A call to a public inquiry before a traffic commissioner can result in the curtailment, suspension or revocation of an operator’s licence and the disqualification of the operator or transport manager. Commissioners look at what went wrong and what has been done to fix it. Operators who arrive without evidence of audits, revised maintenance systems and training are at serious risk. Prepare a full evidence bundle, consider an independent compliance audit before the hearing, and take legal advice early.
Ignoring change of operator in rail and bus contracts
Rail public ownership, Great British Railways and bus franchising all change who the customer is. Supply, maintenance and technology contracts that cannot be assigned or novated, or that allow termination on a change of control, can leave suppliers exposed or authorities without essential services. Review assignment, termination and step-in provisions across the portfolio and plan the transfer of contracts and data before the operator changes.
Missing a procurement challenge window
Public transport contracts are often let under the Procurement Act 2023, which took over from the previous regulations for procurements started from 24 February 2025. Challenge periods are short, and the standstill period before contract signature is the main opportunity to stop an award. Unsuccessful bidders need to read the assessment summary quickly and decide whether to challenge. See our article on the Procurement Act 2023.
Cross-border angle: Bangladesh, the EU and global supply chains
International carriage is governed by conventions that the UK applies alongside many trading partners, which brings a degree of predictability. Still, the contract chain often crosses several legal systems, and transport lawyers in London regularly have to decide which law governs a forwarding contract, where a cargo claim can be brought and how a London judgment or award will be enforced abroad.
For Bangladesh, the UK is a major destination for garments and other goods that travel by sea and air through Chattogram and Dhaka, often with onward road carriage in the UK or Europe. Disputes over delay, damage or documentation can involve Bangladeshi exporters, forwarders in several countries and UK buyers. Our Dhaka and Chattogram teams coordinate local enforcement and evidence gathering; see our page on Bangladesh supply chains.
Since Brexit, carriage between Great Britain and the EU involves customs formalities, and haulage access depends on the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement. Sanctions and export controls also apply to transport services; our sanctions compliance guide covers the basics.
How our transport lawyers in London help
We act for operators, suppliers, investors and shippers across modes. We do not claim higher rights of audience; where advocacy in the higher courts is required, we instruct specialist counsel.
Regulatory and licensing
We advise on operator licensing, public inquiries before traffic commissioners, aviation and rail permissions, and authorisation under the Automated Vehicles Act 2024.
Public transport contracts
We advise bidders and authorities on bus franchising and partnerships, rail supply and services contracts, and procurement challenges under the Procurement Act 2023.
Logistics and carriage terms
We draft and review terms of carriage, forwarding and warehousing agreements, liens and liability limits, and advise on CMR and Montreal Convention exposure.
Transactions and finance
We advise on acquisitions of transport and logistics businesses, rolling stock and aircraft leasing, and fleet finance, with our corporate and asset finance teams.
Cargo and commercial disputes
We conduct loss, damage and delay claims, recovery actions against carriers and insurers, and contract disputes in the courts and arbitration.
Restructuring and transfers
We help suppliers and operators manage contract transfers, TUPE and data handover as rail and bus services move between operators.
If you ship goods internationally by road, check whether your cargo insurance and your contract with the forwarder fill the gap between the CMR liability cap and the real value of the goods. For high-value cargo, the Convention allows a higher value or special interest to be declared in the consignment note.
Checklist for decision-makers
- Do we hold the right operator licences and permissions for every activity and nation in which we operate?
- Are our standard trading conditions properly incorporated, and do they set clear liability limits and time bars?
- Do our contracts survive a change of operator under rail public ownership or bus franchising?
- Have we diaried convention and contractual time limits for any open cargo claims?
- Are we ready to bid for, or challenge, public transport contracts under the Procurement Act 2023?
- Have we mapped the authorisation and liability implications of automated vehicle services we plan to run or supply?
- Are our cross-border movements screened for sanctions and customs compliance?
To discuss a transport or logistics matter, contact our London office or browse all our practices.
Frequently asked questions
01Do I need an operator's licence to run lorries?
Generally yes, if you use goods vehicles above 3.5 tonnes gross plated weight for trade or business in Great Britain, subject to limited exemptions. A restricted licence covers carrying your own goods, a standard national licence covers carrying goods for others in Great Britain, and a standard international licence adds international journeys. Standard licences require good repute, appropriate financial standing and a professionally competent transport manager. Northern Ireland has its own operator licensing system. Operating without the right licence can lead to vehicles being impounded and prosecution.
02What happens at a traffic commissioner public inquiry?
A traffic commissioner can call an operator to a public inquiry where there are concerns about maintenance, drivers' hours, tachographs, financial standing or repute. The commissioner hears evidence, often from DVSA examiners, and can take no action, issue a warning, accept undertakings, or curtail, suspend or revoke the licence, and may disqualify the operator or transport manager. The key question is usually whether the operator can be trusted to comply in future, so evidence of corrective action matters. Preparation, including an independent audit, makes a real difference.
03How much can I recover for goods lost in international road transport?
Where the CMR Convention applies, which covers most international carriage of goods by road for reward between countries where at least one is a party, the carrier's liability for loss or damage is capped at 8.33 Special Drawing Rights per kilogram of gross weight short, plus carriage charges and certain costs. Higher recovery is possible if a higher value or special interest in delivery was declared in the consignment note, or if the carrier's wilful misconduct is proved. Cargo insurance usually fills the gap between the cap and the value of the goods.
04What does the Bus Services Act 2025 change?
The Act, which received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, amends the Transport Act 2000 to make bus franchising easier for local transport authorities to adopt and vary, permits direct awards to incumbent operators in some franchising transitions, strengthens enhanced partnerships including protections for socially necessary services, and removes the restriction on councils in England forming new municipal bus companies. It also adds accessibility planning and enforcement measures. Many provisions are commencing in stages, so check the current position for any specific requirement.
05What is Great British Railways and when will it start?
Great British Railways is the planned public body that will bring together responsibility for rail infrastructure and passenger services in Great Britain. The Railways Bill, introduced in November 2025, would establish it and transfer to it many functions now exercised by the Department for Transport, Network Rail and the Office of Rail and Road, including aspects of access rights. The Bill was progressing through Parliament during 2026, and the precise operational date depends on Royal Assent and implementation. Suppliers should plan for contract transfers in the meantime.
06Who is liable if a self-driving vehicle causes an accident?
Under the Automated Vehicles Act 2024, once a vehicle is authorised and its self-driving feature is engaged, responsibility for how it drives shifts from the individual to the authorised self-driving entity, typically the manufacturer or developer. The user-in-charge is not liable for driving offences arising from the vehicle's driving while the feature is engaged, though they keep other responsibilities. For no-user-in-charge services, a licensed operator oversees the vehicle. Insurance arrangements for automated vehicles also allow injured parties to claim against the insurer. The full regime is expected from 2027.
07Are freight forwarders liable as carriers?
It depends on the contract. A forwarder that merely arranges carriage as agent is usually liable only for its own negligence in making those arrangements, whereas a forwarder that contracts to carry the goods is liable as a carrier for the whole transit, even if it subcontracts. Courts look at the documents, how the price was quoted and how the parties described their roles. The standard trading conditions used also matter. Shippers should clarify the forwarder's role at booking, and forwarders should make sure their conditions are properly incorporated.
Sources and official materials
- Goods Vehicles (Licensing of Operators) Act 1995 — Operator licensing for goods vehicles
- Bus Services Act 2025 — Franchising, partnerships and municipal bus companies
- Automated Vehicles Act 2024 — Authorisation and liability for self-driving vehicles
- Carriage of Goods by Road Act 1965 — Gives effect to the CMR Convention
- Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain — Operator licensing and public inquiries
- UK Civil Aviation Authority — Aviation regulator
General information only, current as at 21 October 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create a solicitor–client relationship. It reflects the law of England and Wales unless stated otherwise; Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate legal systems, and the law changes frequently. Check current official sources and take advice on the facts of your matter.