43 containers, $270,000 in demurrage! CMA CGM was sued for stopping prices

Recently, according to the lawsuit documents received by the U.S. Maritime Commissioner, CMA CGM, a subsidiary of CMA CGM, and a company called Fenix ​​Maritime Services were jointly complained by Eucatex of North America Inc (hereinafter referred to as Eucatex). The reason for the lawsuit was that CMA CGM and Fenix ​​Maritime Services charged more than US$270,000 in demurrage for 43 of its containers.

Eucatex is a manufacturer of flooring, doors, paint and other materials. It is reported that the company commissioned CMA to transport goods from Santos, Sao Paulo to the Port of Long Beach, California, and the goods were divided into four bills of lading. The goods arrived at the Port of Long Beach in January and February this year, but due to the need for inspection, two batches of goods in the bills of lading ( SSZ0845076 and SSZ0852138 ) were detained by the U.S. Customs and Border Administration for "protection" after arriving at the port. According to the content of the lawsuit, the reason for the detention was that the customs inspected some containers.

Image courtesy of FMC

However, inspection requires the maritime service company to transport the goods to a centralized inspection station. This is where the problem arises. Since Fenix ​​failed to transport the goods to the local inspection station in a timely manner as required, Eucatex's free time limit expired and demurrage was incurred . Eucatex paid demurrage of US$58,220. For the same reason, the company paid demurrage four times totaling more than US$270,000 .

During the period when the goods were delayed, the detained goods were released, which had a great impact on the final delivery of the goods.

CMA CGM and Fenix ​​each have their own opinions on the "sky-high" demurrage, claiming that the other party is responsible for assessing demurrage and demurrage, but neither party has provided the company with an assessment invoice.

CMA CGM was founded in 1978 and is a subsidiary of the CMA CGM Group. Currently, the CMA CGM Group's annual global container transportation volume exceeds 19 million. Fenix ​​is ​​a maritime service company that operates one of the largest container terminals in the Port of Los Angeles. It is located in a prime location adjacent to deep-sea channels and transshipment basins, so it has a great advantage in maritime services.

The two companies being sued is nothing more than another confirmation to cargo owners that shipping has not improved much, and the situation at home and abroad is the same. Currently, the US Maritime Commission has issued a request for comments on the demurrage issue, and the lawsuit is still being processed.

Demurrage

CMA CGM

Sky-high Price