Container demurrage, explained without the jargon

Demurrage is terminal time. Detention is equipment time outside the terminal. Both start from published free-time rules, not from when the consignee first reads the arrival notice.

The cheapest mitigation is readiness: entry lodged, truck booked to a slot, and an empty-return plan before the box leaves the yard.

We write free-time dates onto the shipment so finance and operations see the same clock.