Maersk Simplifies Surcharges

From 1 May, the Danish carrier will reduce the number of mandatory local surcharges it implements to three for origin and three for destination.
These include an origin/destination handling charge, an import/export service charge and an origin/destination documentation charge.
It will manage the process through one-on-one consultations with customers as contracts are created or renegotiated.
Although the number of mandatory surcharges will be reduced, Maersk will still make separate surcharges for value-added services that may be added to a shipment.

From 1 May, the Danish carrier will reduce the number of mandatory local surcharges it implements to three for origin and three for destination.
These include an origin/destination handling charge, an import/export service charge and an origin/destination documentation charge.
It will manage the process through one-on-one consultations with customers as contracts are created or renegotiated.
Although the number of mandatory surcharges will be reduced, Maersk will still make separate surcharges for value-added services that may be added to a shipment.
Maersk said the aim of consolidating surcharges was to make “the cost of a container easier to understand and evaluate” and said it would reduce the amount of time customers spent on financial administration.
In January, Maersk unveiled plans to simplify its surcharges, which many shippers criticise as overly complex throughout the industry as a whole.
The first part of the plan was to consolidate its mandatory freight surcharges, with local surcharges to follow.
It plans to consolidate its value-added surcharges later in the year.
It aims to reduce the number of surcharges that shippers face from a possible 44 at the end of 2012 to 12.