OSRA 2022 · 46 CFR Part 541
Stop paying unlawful detention and demurrage.
Every carrier invoice audited against the FMC billing rule. Evidence-backed disputes filed inside the 30-day window. Cash back on your ledger.
Meridian Ocean Line · VOCC
MOL-DM-2026-118402
2 × MRDU 482019 3 · Pier 400
Billed
$9,450
Identifying
Timing · 1 missing
Rate
Dispute · 1 missing
Certification · 2 missing
- 4 required elements missing. § 541.5 / § 541.6
- Free time started 4 days before the container was available. § 545.5 / tariff free-time rule
- 1 charged day when the cargo could not move. 46 U.S.C. § 41102(c) / 46 CFR § 545.5
Not payable
$9,450 recoverable · legally ineligible for payment as issued
Dispute by Nov 8, 2026
- disputed and recovered on ATAHSKIA
- $42.8Mdisputed and recovered on ATAHSKIAATAHSKIA platform data
- of audited invoices failed at least one Part 541 check
- 68.4%of audited invoices failed at least one Part 541 checkATAHSKIA platform data
- of disputes filed inside the 30-day window
- 100%of disputes filed inside the 30-day windowATAHSKIA platform data
- D&D charged by nine of the largest carriers, 2020 to 2022
- $8.9BD&D charged by nine of the largest carriers, 2020 to 2022FMC, Final Rule, 89 Fed. Reg. 14330
Where the money leaks
Four billing traps, all written into federal rules.
Most D&D that should never be paid falls into one of these. Each has a citation, and each is checkable on every invoice.
§ 541.7(a)
Invoices issued after 30 days
Issued day 41Charges stopped on August 19. The invoice arrived dated September 29. A billing party that misses the 30-day issuance window cannot require payment, yet late invoices still get paid out of habit.
§ 541.5 / § 541.6
Missing required data elements
4 of 20 missingNo container availability date. No certification that the carrier's own performance did not contribute. Omit any of the 20 elements and the obligation to pay disappears.
§ 545.5 / § 41102(c)
Demurrage during gate closures
3 blocked daysThe terminal closed for weather on two charged days and offered zero import appointments on a third. Demurrage that cannot prompt a pickup is not serving its incentive purpose.
§ 545.5
Per diem while empty returns were refused
4 refused returnsThe line's own designated return terminal stopped taking 40-foot high cubes. The truck had the empty, the clock kept running, and the invoice billed every day of it.
How recovery works
From inbox to credit memo, with the record to prove it.
{
"invoice": "MOL-DM-2026-118402",
"billing_party": "Meridian Ocean Line (VOCC)",
"containers": ["MRDU4820193", "MRDU4822310"],
"charged": "2026-09-26 to 2026-10-02",
"milestones": 4,
"source": "billing-inbox@cedarridge"
}The 30-day clock
Every day you wait brings you closer to forfeiting the claim.
Three 30-day windows govern every invoice. ATAHSKIA files inside the second one, every time.
Day 0
Charges stop accruing
Container out-gated or empty returned. The billing party's clock starts.
≤ Day 30
Invoice must issue
§ 541.7(a): an invoice issued later carries no obligation to pay.
+30 days
Your relief request window
§ 541.8(a): at least 30 calendar days from invoice issuance to request mitigation, refund or waiver.
+30 days
Billing party must resolve
§ 541.8(b): 30 calendar days from receipt of your request, unless both sides agree otherwise.
Billing Accuracy Index · Q3 2026
Who bills by the rule, and who doesn't.
Share of invoices carrying all 20 § 541.6 elements, across the largest carriers and terminals in ATAHSKIA customer books.
| Billing party | Invoices | All 20 elements | Issued late | Disputes credited | Most-missed element |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carrier A VOCC | 4,812 | 52.1% | 2.1% | 58.4% | Container availability date |
| Carrier B VOCC | 3,967 | 45.3% | 3.4% | 61.9% | Certification of no contributing performance |
| Carrier C VOCC | 3,410 | 38.6% | 6.8% | 66.2% | Container availability date |
| Carrier D VOCC | 2,896 | 34.2% | 4.9% | 70.8% | Dispute URL or QR code |
| Carrier E VOCC | 2,541 | 29.0% | 9.7% | 73.5% | Start date of free time |
| Carrier F VOCC | 2,207 | 24.8% | 11.2% | 76.1% | Applicable tariff rule |
Public index is blinded. Inside your workspace, every carrier and terminal is named against your own invoices.
Invalidation estimator
What is sitting in last year's invoices?
Move the sliders to your volume and spend. The expected case reproduces our published worked example.
Model: 65% of billed D&D carries a Part 541 or incentive-principle defect; 62% to 97% of defective dollars are credited, 75% expected.
Estimated recoverable per year
$141k to $221k
- Defective charges
- $227,500
- Expected recovery
- $170,625
- Enterprise BCO cost
- $49,875
- Net cash recovered
- $120,750
3.4x return on the Enterprise BCO plan ($2,450/mo).
Verify with a free 12-month auditA Fortune 500 home goods retailer · 18,000 TEU through San Pedro Bay
“We recovered $340,000 in invalid per diem in the first 90 days. Most of it was on invoices our team had already approved.”
“ATAHSKIA gives us hard proof of terminal gate closures, so carriers have to credit the charges instead of arguing about them.”
“We used to check invoices line by line in a spreadsheet and still missed things. The audit catches missing certifications and late invoices on every bill, automatically.”
Connects where invoices and milestones already live
No manual container entry.
TMS, visibility, terminal appointment and ERP connections feed the audit. Disputes and credits flow back.
Questions logistics and finance teams ask first.
Is an invoice really unpayable if one element is missing?
46 CFR § 541.5 says that failing to include any required minimum information eliminates any obligation of the billed party to pay the charge. ATAHSKIA flags each missing element with its § 541.6 citation so the relief request rests on the regulation's own text.
How long do we have to dispute a demurrage or detention invoice?
Under § 541.8(a) the billing party must give you at least 30 calendar days from the invoice issuance date to request mitigation, refund or waiver. The billing party then has 30 calendar days from receipt to resolve the request. ATAHSKIA tracks both clocks per invoice.
Will disputing damage our relationship with the carrier?
Disputes go out as structured relief requests to the billing party's published dispute contact, citing the regulation and attaching evidence. Billing desks process them like any other credit request. Nothing is sent without your approval, and you can set carrier-specific rules for tone and routing.
Does ATAHSKIA file complaints with the FMC for us?
No. ATAHSKIA prepares the charge complaint dossier under 46 U.S.C. § 41310, and you (or your counsel) submit it. ATAHSKIA is audit and dispute-preparation software, not a law firm, and does not represent anyone before the Commission.
What does the free 12-month audit cost?
Nothing upfront. Send a year of paid and open D&D invoices; we return a recovery opportunity report within 48 hours. If you pursue recoveries on historical invoices, a success fee applies only to amounts actually credited or refunded.
Which charges are in scope?
Ocean carrier and marine terminal operator demurrage, detention and per diem on US imports and exports, including NVOCC invoices to their own customers. Charges invoiced before OSRA 2022 took effect on June 16, 2022 fall outside the charge complaint process.
Don't let your 30-day dispute window expire.
Send your recent D&D invoices for a free audit. We report what is recoverable within 48 hours.