MSC's Unreasonable Demurrage Policies Violate Shipping Regs, US Company Says

Major ocean carrier MSC violated U.S. shipping regulations because of its unreasonable demurrage practices, U.S. metal trader CCMA said. In a complaint to the Federal Maritime Commission released this week, CCMA said it was assessed more than $114,000 in unfair demurrage fees by MSC, which levied the charges despite the containers being subject to a government hold and unavailable for pickup. The FMC should order MSC to pay CCMA reparations for its “unlawful conduct,” the complaint said.

CCMA said it contracted MSC to ship 10 20-foot dry van containers of high-carbon ferrochrome from Albania to Seattle in October 2021. The containers eventually became subject to an "agriculture hold" by CBP, which said it needed to move the cargo to a customs examination station. CBP eventually removed the hold on the goods, and CCMA picked up all of its containers in mid-December but not before paying $114,156 in demurrage fees to MSC.

MSC “repeatedly ignored” CCMA’s “attempts to communicate regarding the demurrage fees,” the complaint said, and declined to extend the last free day for the containers or waive or reduce the demurrage charges. “MSC’s stated policy and practice regarding the assessment of demurrage charges for containers on governmental holds is to charge full demurrage ‘regardless of delays caused by US Customs/inspections/holds,’” the complaint said.

But CCMA said CBP’s hold was “outside” of its control. MSC “failed to establish and observe just and reasonable practices” by “assessing demurrage charges against shipments, including the Containers, that are subject to a governmental hold for examination, and therefore, unavailable for pick-up.” These practices “serve no incentivizing principle and do not promote freight fluidity,” CCMA said.

The U.S. metal trader said it tried multiple times to resolve the issue with MSC before filing a complaint with the FMC but was “unsuccessful.” MSC refused to “engage in good faith discussions to resolve the dispute,” the complaint said. MSC didn’t respond to a request for comment.