The Federal Maritime Commission on April 5 warned the ocean transport industry against imposing unreasonable detention and demurrage fees as shippers and carriers adjust their supply chains due to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore last month (see 2403260047).
Ocean carriers COSCO Shipping Lines and Orient Overseas Container Line Limited violated U.S. shipping regulations when they failed to perform their “inland transportation obligations," charged unfair detention and demurrage fees, and refused to release cargo, Samsung Electronics America said in two separate complaints filed with the Federal Maritime Commission on March 28.
A U.S. protective equipment supplier accused Mediterrenaen Shipping Co., FedEx Trade Networks Transport & Brokerage, and Total Terminals International of assessing unfair detention and demurrage, failing to extend free time and failing to send an invoice for other charges, it said in a complaint to the Federal Maritime Commission.
The Federal Maritime Commission approved a settlement between Rahal International and Hapag-Lloyd and dismissed the complaint between both parties. The settlement, approved on March 15, comes after Rahal accused Hapag-Lloyd in June of failing to establish adequate facilities to return empty containers to the Port of New York and New Jersey and unfairly charging detention and demurrage (see 2307050034).
The Federal Maritime Commission is preparing for another uptick in enforcement and is expecting a range of rulemakings to be finalized during or before FY 2025, including a new charge complaint process, a new container data collection effort and a new electronic court case management system. The commission previewed those updates as part of a $48.4 million congressional funding request released this week for FY 2025 -- about a $5 million increase from the $43.7 million it requested the previous year (see 2303200063).
Shippers continued to press the Federal Maritime Commission on why it allowed carriers to bill Red Sea-related surcharges without a 30-day notice, saying during a March 6 meeting of the National Shipping Advisory Committee that carriers failed to justify those charges.
FloraTrace is launching new insurance coverage for importers facing unforeseen expenses due to enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, it said in a March 4 news release. Offered through its subsidiary Rezylient, the coverage will be triggered by receipt of a UFLPA detention notice, with covered losses potentially including storage of a detained entry, attorney fees, consultant fees, demurrage, drayage fees, exam fees, and extra costs and expenses including supply chain tracing subject to agreement by underwriters, Rezylient said on its website. The insurance may also be paired with FloraTrace’s origin testing and verification services, providing “financial protection against unforeseen detentions and disruptions in the supply chain, while also offering importers a proactive tool for risk management,” the news release said.
The Federal Maritime Commission expects to issue its long-awaited final rule on unreasonable carrier conduct “in the next couple of months,” FMC chair Daniel Maffei said this week. He also said the commission has seen a sharp rise in enforcement cases so far this year, and he and Commissioner Rebecca Dye said they are more closely probing Red Sea-related surcharges being assessed by ocean carriers.
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The Federal Maritime Commission issued its final rule for new demurrage and detention billing requirements, describing the information carriers and marine terminal operators must include in their invoices, clarifying which parties can be billed and under what time frames, outlining the processes for disputing charges, and more.