Demurrage
Container sitting inside the terminal past free time. Requires availability date, last free day, and gate-out date.
This one runs on a clock
It accrues every day until something stops it, so the number of days matters as much as the rate. Two figures decide the total: when the clock started, and how many free days you had. Both should be on your arrival notice.
What it is calculated on
Per day, which is why the number of days matters as much as the rate.
What it appears as on real documents
Providers write the same charge many different ways. All of these mean this charge:
- demurrage
- demurrage charge
- port demurrage
- terminal demurrage
- container demurrage
- dem
- free time exceeded demurrage
- demurrage & detention
- dem/det
What settles it when you question it
The test is whether the amount matches what was quoted, on the same basis. If the basis changed, that is the thing to ask about rather than the total.
Ask for:
- Arrival notice
- Container availability notice
- Last free day notification
- Gate-out record
- Published daily rate schedule
- Line-by-line calculation breakdown
Before you book
This cannot be quoted in advance, because the amount is not your provider's to set. What you can pin down is how it will be billed and what evidence you will be given.
Ask: Ask for the free days at destination, the daily demurrage rate, and how you will be notified of the last free day.
Check a demurrage on your own invoice
Free, and no account needed to start.
Upload your quotation and final invoice. ChargeBasis pairs every charge on its normalised type rather than its wording, reports which part of the difference your documents actually explain, and names the document that would settle the rest.
Charges that travel with this one
- Documentation feePer-document charge. A second documentation fee on one bill of lading is a common duplicate.
- Fuel surchargePercentage or per-unit surcharge. Check the percentage applied and the base it was applied to.
- Security surchargeSmall fixed surcharge. Usually valid, but should still appear in the quoted inclusion list.
- StorageDay-counted. Needs a start date, a free-time allowance, and an end date to be checkable.
Common questions
- What is a demurrage on a freight invoice?
- Container sitting inside the terminal past free time. Requires availability date, last free day, and gate-out date.
- What is a demurrage calculated on?
- Per day, which is why the number of days matters as much as the rate.
- What should I ask for if I question a demurrage?
- Ask for arrival notice, container availability notice, last free day notification, gate-out record, published daily rate schedule, line-by-line calculation breakdown. The test is whether the amount matches what was quoted, on the same basis.