Sealand: PSW Container Excess Dwell Fee

As the November 15th effective billing date on the new Container Excess Dwell fee looms, Sealand – A Maersk Company is aggressively working on developing as many solutions as possible for customers. However, they still have many containers over 9 days inside the terminals, and are in the process of securing additional land outside the marine terminals to offer extended storage solutions. If you have difficulty picking up your cargo, reach out to your customer service representative to review which containers should be drayed to an off-dock location and Sealand will make every effort to assist you.

Sealands updated FAQ

1.    When will the Emergency fee go into effect? 

The program will go into effect on the 1st of November, but penalties will not be assessed until effective the 15th of November. This two-week grace period has been given to allow cargo interest parties with the appropriate time to clear the docks. Should material progress be made, it is at the discretion of the Port Executive Director to extend that effective fee assessment date even further. 

2.    How will the fee be assessed?

The fee will be assessed on all containers dwelling for 9 days or more on truck moves or for 6 days or more on rail bound move. The 9th day and 6th day respectively will be the first charge day.

3.    What is the fee structure?

 

4. How will the dwell days be applied for containers on terminal on the 15th of November?

The fee will be assessed on all containers dwelling for 9 days or more on truck moves or for 6 days or more on rail bound move. The 9th day and 6th day respectively will be the first charge day.

5. With the program effective date commencing the 1st of November, can charges be applied retroactively?

As per the Port Authority of Los Angeles Tariff No.4 circular found here, we do not see any verbiage that supports the retroactive application of the fee.

6. Will this charge apply to all PSW containers?

The charge will only be applicable to all waterfront terminal dwelling import containers. The charge will not be applicable to any non-waterfront rail yard containers.

7. Who will be charging this fee?

The relevant Port Authority will be charging the fee

8. Who is responsible for paying this fee?

The Port Authority of Los Angeles Tariff No. 4 states: “This Excessive Dwell Fee shall be billed directly to the Ocean Carrier under whose bill of lading a Container subject to the fee was discharged…” This means that the Ports are submitting the bill to Ocean Carriers to act as collection agent to charge those with a cargo interest in the laden import containers.

9. As a customer of Sealand, should my container exceed the defined dwell times, will I be billed this fee?

Yes, should your container not be removed beyond the defined dwell times, Sealand will pass this cost onto all customers as the owner of the cargo that is dwelling on the terminal, resulting in the fee from the Ports.

10. How will I be billed?

Sealand will issue an invoice for the accumulated owed fee.

11. Will the fee be calculated based on calendar or working days?

The surcharge will be applied based on calendar days, inclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.

12. How will the number of days be measured?

Discharge from the vessel will constitute day 0. Days are then measured based on the completion of a 24-hour period commencing 3:00AM each calendar day.

13. For shipments booked with Sealand on a through bill to an inland rail location, should the container be subject to rail delays, will customers still be subject to the fee?

While Sealand will still be subject to the fee by the Port Authority, for through bills to inland rail locations where the container was subject to delays, Sealand will not pass this fee onto the customer.

14. Will there be a maximum cap on the fee, or will the charge continue for the duration the container is on terminal/rail?

There is no maximum cap on the fee that will be applied.

15. Will containers held for Customs Exam be exempt?

No, all containers will be subject to the fee irrespective of release status.

16. Will the fee be applicable for store door moves where Sealand controls the trucking (MPT)?

No, the fee will not be applicable unless the delay is caused by a freight, OBL, customs hold (exam or any government inspection) or any receiving constraints at the customer’s warehouse.

17. How will the surcharge be applied for Carrier Preferred Trucker moves?

The customer is responsible for the fee on all Customer Preferred Trucker moves.

18. Will the charge apply to me if I have a no-new-fee clause in my service contract?

This is a government impelled charge, the no-new-fee clause does not apply in this in-stance.

19. Will Sealand have to publish this new surcharge in our tariff and give 30-day no-tice per FMC regulations?

Sealand has published a new surcharge in its tariff under the name “Emergency Government Port Storage Charge”. The published tariff rule allows for this new surcharge to be applicable effective immediately. Customers can therefore expect this surcharge to be applied on the same timeline as announced by the Ports.

20. What if I am unable to pick up my container due to a lack of chassis, will the emergency surcharge be waived?

We are unfortunately unable to waive this government-mandated fee due to lack of chassis. For CY and SD (CPT) moves, the trucker nominated by the customer is responsible for securing the chassis.

21. What happens if my container is placed in a closed area at the terminal?

APMT and TTI have confirmed that they will not be placing cargo in a closed area.

22. Who is responsible for the fee if the container is not made available by the terminal?

Customers will not be charged the fee if the container is not made available by the terminal for pickup.

23. If an appointment pickup time is not available, how will this fee be assessed?

The fee will generally apply even in situations where terminal appointments are not available if the Port Authority does not make any exceptions. We encourage truckers to maximize dual transactions and leverage weekday 2nd shifts and Saturday gates when there are typically ample appointments available.

24. What solutions will be made available to Sealand customers?

We are working to secure additional space in the Los Angeles/Long Beach area to offer long-term storage solutions. Truck power and chassis availability is however limited so please let us know what cargo cannot be picked up directly from the terminals so we can assess whether it can be drayed to a holding yard.

25. What happens once a container is gated out and placed in a holding yard (per the solution outlined above)?

The container will no longer be subject to the Emergency fee but will continue to be subjected to demurrage fees.

26. Will customers be charged a drayage fee for the movement of their containers from the port to the holding yard?

Yes, a drayage fee will be applicable.

27. Will all Sealand customers be offered this solution?

As there are only a finite amount of capacity at these holding yards, movement will be subject to availability. Please contact your customer service representative for more information.

28. Will my container be placed on hold until the fee is paid

Containers will not be placed on hold subject to payment of the excess dwell fee. In-stead, collection will be done as a follow up process. Container demurrage holds will continue to be applied per current standard practice.