Demurrage

Charges incurred when containers or vehicles are held beyond free time.

Area: Logistics & Trade
Also known as: detention charges, port storage charges
In this area: 25 terms of 259

Demurrage is the daily penalty charged when a container stays at the port or terminal past its allotted free days. Detention is the related charge for keeping the container itself too long after collection.

It is almost always caused by paperwork rather than logistics, and it escalates daily. Because it lands after the goods are ordered, it is the landed-cost component most often forgotten in margin calculations.