Demurrage can be charged by the line or terminal when equipment is held past the free time in the contract or tariff. It is common when a container stays at a terminal. Parcel Management Group is a registered broker in Ventura, CA 93001. Call (805) 984-4114.

What is detention in trucking?

In trucking, detention is a charge for the driver and truck waiting at a shipper or consignee past free time. It is not the same as a lumper fee.

Is container detention the same as demurrage?

No. Demurrage usually applies while equipment sits at the terminal. Container detention, sometimes called per diem, applies after the equipment leaves the terminal and is kept past free time.

Demurrage vs Detention | Parcel Management Group

Demurrage can be charged by the line or terminal when equipment is held past free time. Detention is a charge for waiting past free time, either a driver at a stop or a container kept outside a terminal. Invoices mix the words. Parcel Management Group is a registered freight broker (USDOT 3266041 · MC 1030328) in Ventura, CA 93001. Call (805) 984-4114.

What demurrage means

Demurrage can be charged by the line or terminal when equipment stays at a terminal, port, or rail ramp longer than the free time in the tariff or contract. The equipment is often a container.

Free time is set by the tariff or contract. Trucks often use hours. Containers often use days. Ask again if a hold delays pickup.

Demurrage is not a lumper fee. A lumper fee pays warehouse labor to load or unload. See accessorial charges and what is a lumper fee.

What detention means

In trucking, detention is the charge when the driver and the truck wait at a shipper or consignee past free time. That line is separate from a liftgate, inside delivery, or lumper labor.

In ocean and intermodal shipping, detention is the charge when a container, and sometimes the chassis, stays outside the terminal past free time. The carrier still owns the equipment. The short move that takes a container out of the terminal while free time is still running is drayage.

Driver wait at a dock is trucking detention. A container at the terminal is demurrage. A container out of the terminal is container detention.

How demurrage and detention differ

Charge	What it covers
Demurrage	Equipment held at the line or terminal past free time
Trucking detention	Driver and truck waiting at a stop past free time
Container detention	Equipment kept outside the terminal past free time
Storage	Terminal charge for cargo space, separate from demurrage

Per diem and storage

Some tariffs call the out-of-terminal charge per diem. That is a daily equipment charge after free time, and it is container detention unless the tariff says otherwise. Storage is separate: the terminal bills for cargo space, and demurrage bills for the equipment. Paying one does not erase the other.

Who usually pays

The contract sets who pays. The shipper, the consignee, or the party that caused the delay may be billed. Sale terms such as FOB can shift that cost. See what is FOB. Confirm the free time, who controls the appointment, and who pays if the clock runs out.

What to tell your broker

Before booking, send these facts.

Name the mode: truck, intermodal, or ocean.
Say whether a container, chassis, or trailer will be held.
Name the terminal or rail ramp, if any, and share the last free day if you have it.
Share dock hours, appointment rules, and who unloads.
Say who will pay if free time ends.

The last free day is the final day before demurrage or container detention can start. If you do not have it, say so. Start with an LTL freight quote or an FTL move once those facts are ready. See how freight quoting works.

How PMG helps

PMG books LTL and FTL and asks about free time, appointments, and who pays before the truck is set, so a long dock is on the quote. Quote path: /ltl-freight-quote/ · /services/.

Call (805) 984-4114 or start a chat at /#contact.

Demurrage vs detention