What is an LR (Lorry Receipt) Number?

A plain guide to lorry receipts, and how to track a dispatch with one.

The short answer

An LR number is the number printed on a lorry receipt: the paper a transport company gives you when it accepts your goods for delivery. It is also called a consignment note, a GR (goods receipt) or a bilty. The number identifies that one consignment, so you, the transporter and your party can all talk about the same parcel.

What is on a lorry receipt

  • The LR number and the date the goods were booked
  • Who sent the goods and who will receive them
  • The booking and delivery stations
  • A description of the goods, the number of packages and the weight
  • The freight charge and whether it is paid or to-pay
  • Your invoice number and, where needed, the e-way bill number
  • The vehicle number

Layouts differ from one transporter to the next, but these are the details you will usually find.

Why an LR matters to a wholesaler

  • It is your proof of dispatch. When a party says the goods never came, the LR shows when and where they were handed over.
  • It is how you chase a delivery. The transporter looks up a consignment by its LR number.
  • It is the basis of any claim. For short delivery or damage, the claim to the transporter is raised against the LR.
  • It ties the dispatch to the invoice. The party gets the LR number so they can collect the goods from the transporter's godown.

How to track a dispatch with the LR number

  1. Note the LR number and the transporter at the time of booking. The number alone is not enough, because different transporters can use the same numbers.
  2. Ask the transporter. Many have a tracking page on their website or an office you can call. Give them the LR number and the booking date.
  3. Send the party the LR number as soon as the goods leave, so they can follow up at their end too.
  4. Confirm delivery once the party has the goods, and record it against the LR.

What to do when an LR is missing or the goods are late

  • Lost or missing LR copy: ask the booking transporter for a duplicate copy. Have your invoice number, the party's name and the booking date ready.
  • Goods not arrived: ask the transporter for the current status, and ask which vehicle and station the consignment is at.
  • Short delivery or damage: write down pieces sent against pieces received straight away, ask the party to note the shortage or damage when they take delivery, and raise the claim against the LR number without waiting.

Keeping track of dozens of LRs a week

With a handful of dispatches a week, a notebook or a WhatsApp group is enough. At 30 or 50 parties a week it is not: LR numbers sit in messages and paper copies, nobody knows which goods are still on the road, and a short delivery is noticed only when the party calls.

The LR Tracker in JS1 Software logs every dispatch with its LR number, transporter, party and date. You can see at a glance what is in transit, what is delivered and what is overdue. Customers can get a WhatsApp message with the LR number as soon as their goods are dispatched. For how wholesalers use it day to day, read LR tracking for garment distributors.

See JS1 Software for garment wholesalers

Questions people ask

LR stands for lorry receipt. It is also called a consignment note, a GR (goods receipt) or a bilty.

The transport company issues it when it accepts your goods for delivery. You do not choose it yourself.

You also need to know which transporter booked it, because numbers can repeat across transporters. With the transporter's name, the LR number and the booking date, their office or tracking page can look it up.

No. The e-way bill number comes from the GST portal. The LR number comes from the transporter. Both usually appear on the lorry receipt and travel with the goods.

Yes. The LR Tracker logs every dispatch with LR number, transporter, party and date, so you can see what is in transit, delivered or overdue.