Poor planning decisions from lack of visibility into D&D exposure
Definition
Many shippers and logistics providers make routing, booking, and warehouse‑siting decisions without granular data on historical D&D costs, leading them to choose ports, carriers, or free‑time structures that look cheaper on base freight but cost more once chronic D&D is included. This mis‑optimization creates a recurring, hidden drag on network performance and margins.
Key Findings
- Financial Impact: $50,000–$300,000 per year in avoidable D&D and related operational inefficiencies for active importers/exporters (inferred from fee ranges and recurrent excess dwell patterns)[2][3][5]
- Frequency: Quarterly
- Root Cause: D&D charges are often tracked in separate billing systems or spreadsheets and not integrated into lane‑level profitability analytics; yet they can be substantial, with demurrage and detention commonly $50–$300 per day and varying significantly by port and carrier.[2][3][5][6] Without consolidated visibility, planners underestimate the total landed cost of using congested ports, short free‑time contracts, or remote warehouses that lengthen the unload/return cycle, locking the organization into costly patterns.
Why This Matters
This pain point represents a significant opportunity for B2B solutions targeting Freight and Package Transportation.
Affected Stakeholders
Network design and supply chain strategy teams, Procurement and carrier selection managers, Logistics analysts and data teams, Warehouse/inventory network planners, CFOs evaluating total landed cost
Deep Analysis (Premium)
Financial Impact
$30,000–$100,000/year in avoidable D&D; potential budget overrun • $30,000–$100,000/year in D&D with no prevention mechanism • $30,000–$100,000/year in excess D&D; significant percentage of total freight budget
Current Workarounds
Accepts broker's quote; pays D&D when it arrives; no mechanism to provide feedback to broker; same vendor used due to relationship • Annual contracts with preferred carriers negotiated without D&D history; ad-hoc renegotiation only when bills spike; manual lane analysis in regional spreadsheets • Freight audit firms flag D&D overages post-hoc; manual spreadsheet reconciliation by distribution center; renegotiation with carriers happens once yearly
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Methodology & Sources
Data collected via OSINT from regulatory filings, industry audits, and verified case studies.
Evidence Sources:
- https://www.yardview.com/post/average-detention-demurrage-fees
- https://www.hapag-lloyd.com/en/online-business/digital-insights-dock/insights/2024/06/detention-and-demurrage--what-is-the-d-d-charge-in-shipping---.html
- https://www.fourkites.com/blogs/demurrage-and-detention-charges-whats-the-difference/
Related Business Risks
Systemic under‑billing and billing‑error write‑offs on detention & demurrage
Runaway detention & demurrage fees from poor coordination
Disputed detention & demurrage charges and rework
Delayed cash collection due to contested D&D invoices
Loss of equipment and terminal capacity from prolonged container time
Regulatory exposure and penalties over non‑compliant D&D billing
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