The Federal Maritime Commission will now require global ocean carrier groups 2M, Ocean Alliance and THE Alliance to provide “enhanced” pricing and capacity information, the FMC announced May 5. The new information requirement will give the FMC more data to assess the “behavior” of ocean carriers, including information on the pricing of individual trade lanes by container and service type. The FMC now also will receive more carrier data “regarding capacity management decisions,” the agency said.
Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case you missed them. You can find any article by searching the title or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
Hapag-Lloyd was ordered to pay $822,220 by a U.S. administrative law judge after a Federal Maritime Commission investigation determined the carrier imposed unfair detention fees, according to an April 22 decision. Hapag-Lloyd “acted unreasonably” by charging detention fees on a drayage provider that was unable to make appointments to return empty containers, the FMC’s Bureau of Enforcement said, and continued to impose the charges after they were disputed alongside “corroborating evidence.”
The Federal Maritime Commission recently published an instructional video to help industry file shipping complaints. The video explains which processes are “most beneficial to achieving a complainant’s desired outcome,” including how members of the public can report information that may trigger an investigation or initiate formal civil litigation that can provide wronged parties with damages and restitution, the FMC said.
The Federal Maritime Commission finished its first round of meetings with carriers under its new export services audit effort (see 2203210026), the agency said April 22. The meetings -- part of an expansion of the FMC’s Vessel-Operating Common Carrier Audit Program to examine how shipping lines can best serve U.S. exporters -- have resulted in “invaluable” information so far, FMC Chairman Daniel Maffei said.
The House’s ocean shipping bill contains some “troubling” export provisions and could place unfair burdens on carriers to meet exporter needs, said John Butler, a carrier industry official. But exporters view the provisions differently and think they could ensure carriers are treating both import and export shipments equitably, said Karyn Booth, a transportation lawyer.
Exporters told the Federal Maritime Commission that detention and demurrage invoices need to include the earliest return dates containers will be allowed at the terminal, and that "clock-stopping events," such as a lack of appointments to bring a container to the terminal, should also be on the invoices. However, the World Shipping Council said that while the earliest return date is something shippers need to know, they need to know it before a carrier invoice.
Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case you missed them. You can find any article by searching the title or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
The Federal Maritime Commission is seeking public comments on an information collection related to non-vessel-operating common carrier service arrangements (NSAs), which can help the FMC adjudicate shipping disputes. Comments are due April 29.
The Federal Maritime Commission has so far received mixed feedback on the possibility of new demurrage and detention billing requirements (see 2202070026), with shippers saying the rules are sorely needed and at least one carrier saying the industry shouldn’t face additional regulations.