Detention pay calculator

What is detention pay in trucking?

Detention pay is money a carrier earns when a shipper or receiver keeps the truck waiting longer than the agreed free time. The trailer can't be loaded or unloaded any faster by the driver, and every hour at the dock is an hour the truck isn't earning on the road. Detention puts a price on that time.

The terms are set before the load, usually on the rate confirmation: how many hours are free, the hourly rate after that, and what proof is needed. This detention pay calculator does the time math for you, including appointments that run past midnight, and shows exactly what to claim.

How detention is calculated

The clock usually starts at the appointment time if the truck arrived on time or early. If the truck arrived late, many brokers start the clock at arrival instead, and some don't pay detention at all on a late arrival. The calculator starts at the appointment or the arrival, whichever is later, and flags a late arrival.

Time on the clock runs from that start to when the truck left. Subtract the free time, and what's left is detention. Many brokers bill in set increments, like every 15 minutes or every full hour, so the calculator rounds billable time down to the increment you choose. Multiply by the hourly rate and you have the claim.

• EXAMPLE

  EXAMPLE STOP

  8:00 appointment, out at 1:10 pm

  The truck checked in at 7:30, before an 8:00 appointment, so the clock starts at 8:00. It left at 13:10: 5 hours 10 minutes on the clock. With 2 hours free, 3 hours 10 minutes are over. Billed in 15-minute steps, that's 3 billable hours, and at $50 an hour the claim is $150. Arrive at 8:45 instead and the clock starts 45 minutes later.

Detention fees in trucking: the terms to check

• +Free time. Two hours is common, but some loads give more, especially live unloads. Read the rate con.
• +The hourly rate. Set by the broker or shipper. Some cap the total per stop or per day.
• +When the clock starts. Appointment time, arrival or check-in. Being late can change it or void it.
• +Notice. Many brokers require a call or message when detention starts, not after the truck leaves.
• +Proof. In and out times on the signed bill of lading, ELD records or a gate log. Without times on paper, claims often fail.

If any of those aren't on the rate confirmation, ask before you accept the load. Terms agreed after the fact are hard to collect on.

Reading your result

If the result shows billable hours, send the claim with the invoice, along with the times on the bill of lading and any messages you sent when detention started. If it flags a late arrival, check whether your broker pays detention on late arrivals before you claim. If billable time is zero, free time hadn't run out, and there's nothing to claim on this stop.

Detention charges in trucking go unclaimed more often than they get refused. Drivers are tired, the paperwork goes in late, the times weren't written down. A simple habit of photographing the signed bill of lading with times on it at every stop recovers more money than most rate negotiations.

Detention pay for truck drivers and owner-operators

For a company driver, detention pay depends on the employer's policy, which may pay hourly after a set wait or not at all. For an owner-operator with their own authority, detention is paid to the carrier by the broker, and it's your money to claim. Either way, the time math is the same.

Our dispatchers track appointment, arrival and departure times on every load, tell the broker when detention starts, and file the claim with the proof, as part of the fee. Each load is yours to accept or turn down, and the broker's rate confirmation comes to you. See how we work with owner-operators, or check what our fee costs with the dispatcher fee calculator.

For layover, TONU and other extra charges, use the accessorial charges calculator. Flatbed loads often wait at mills and job sites, so the flatbed rate calculator is worth a look if you haul open deck. For how posted rates treat accessorials, see truckload spot rates.