Demurrage
A penalty fee charged by the port or terminal for cargo that remains past its Last Free Day. Typically $150–$350 per container per day in the U.S. — preventable with timely dispatch.
Where demurrage comes from
When cargo arrives at a port, the terminal grants a set number of free days to retrieve it. Past that window — the Last Free Day — the terminal starts charging demurrage. The fee is designed to incentivize cargo turnover and keep terminal yard space available.
Demurrage is charged by the terminal or port operator, not the carrier. It's a storage fee, distinct from detention, which is a separate charge for holding equipment past the free return window.
How demurrage adds up
Per-day rates vary by port and tier (fees often escalate after the first few days past LFD), but $150–$350 per container per day is a reasonable U.S. average. A container sitting a full week past LFD can easily owe four figures before anyone notices.
At the operation level, demurrage spend is one of the clearest signals of coordination breakdown. Teams that systematically track LFDs and dispatch proactively reduce it dramatically; teams that don't tend to keep paying it.
How Logixa handles it
Logixa prevents demurrage by catching containers before they hit their Last Free Day — automated alerts at 72, 48, and 24 hours before LFD surface at-risk containers on the dashboard, and dispatchers assign a driver without switching tools. Teams typically eliminate 80% or more of avoidable demurrage in their first quarter.
See Logixa's demurrage preventionSee how Logixa makes this part of your workflow concrete.
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