Demurrage time bar
Meaning
A demurrage time bar is the deadline, usually 90 days after discharge, by which the owner must present a fully documented demurrage claim.
Demurrage time bar explained
Most tanker charters require the owner to submit the claim, with all supporting documents, within a fixed period after completion of discharge. If the deadline is missed, or the documents required are missing, the claim can be extinguished entirely.
Courts have generally enforced these clauses strictly, so owners' claims teams track the time bar from the day discharge completes.
Watch out for
Check which documents the clause requires. Pumping logs, NORs and statements of facts from every port are commonly needed; a claim that lacks one may be time-barred.
Related terms
Demurrage
Demurrage is the agreed daily amount the charterer pays the owner for every day the ship is kept in port beyond the laytime allowed.
Statement of facts
A statement of facts (SOF) is the agent's record of every event during a port call, from arrival and NOR to hoses off, used to calculate laytime.
Laytime statement
A laytime statement is the calculation that sets out laytime allowed, time used at each port, exceptions and the resulting demurrage or despatch.