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The basics

What is demurrage in fuel hauling?

Demurrage in fuel hauling explained: what it is, how free time and hourly rates work, how terminal waits are tracked, and why charges get disputed.

Demurrage is the charge for a driver's time spent waiting beyond an agreed free time: in the line at a fuel terminal's rack, at a bulk plant, or at the drop. The trucking company (the carrier) bills it to the company that ordered the fuel (the fuel buyer). In trucking it's also called detention; some contracts use one word for the loading end and the other for the delivery end. See the glossary.

Why it exists

A truck and driver waiting at a terminal earn nothing for that time, and a driver's hours of service keep running. Demurrage puts a price on that time, so the cost of waiting falls on the side that can change it: better scheduling, appointment times, or terminal choice.

How it's usually billed

Most agreements have three parts:

  • Free time: the waiting that isn't charged, often an hour or two.
  • An hourly rate for the time after it.
  • How time is counted: from when the truck arrived to when it left, often rounded to set steps.

For example, with an hour of free time and $100 an hour, a 2 hour 35 minute wait bills 1 hour 35 minutes. Counted in 15-minute steps rounded up (as Demurly does), that's 1 hour 45 minutes: $175.00.

The terms vary by carrier and buyer, so write them down for each customer before the first charge.

What evidence holds up

A demurrage charge is a claim about time, so it stands on proof of when the truck arrived and left:

  • Times recorded as they happened, not typed in later
  • Location: GPS showing the truck at the site for the whole wait
  • Photos of the line, the gate or a gate ticket
  • Paperwork: the bill of lading (BOL) and load number, to match the charge to the load

How terminal waits are tracked

Fuel terminal wait-time tracking used to mean a driver's note or a gate ticket. Now the driver's phone or the truck can keep the record:

  • Geofencing: the terminal's outline is drawn on a map, so GPS shows when the truck was inside it.
  • Automatic stops: tracking ends on its own when the truck leaves the terminal, so a wait isn't left running, and a GPS glitch doesn't end it early.
  • Photos taken on site, with the time they were taken.
  • EDI: a carrier's TMS can report arrival and departure times as 214 messages.

In Demurly the driver starts a wait with one tap (or a carrier's EDI 214 opens it), GPS is logged through the wait, and it stops by itself when the truck drives away. See Terminals and geofences.

Why charges get disputed

Most disputes come down to the times: the buyer's records (an appointment, a gate log, the BOL) say something different from the carrier's. Others are about the rate or free time, or about evidence that's missing. Charges with times recorded on site, GPS and photos leave less to argue about.

How Demurly handles it

Demurly manages terminal demurrage from the wait to the payment: the driver records the wait on their phone with GPS and photos, the carrier checks it and sends it, and the fuel buyer approves or disputes it with the same evidence in front of them. Free time is 60 minutes unless the carrier sets another, and billable time is counted in 15-minute steps, rounded up. Fuel buyers use Demurly free.

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