Steplane › Guides › Accessorial charges list
Updated 19 October 2026 · Written by Paul, founder of Steplane, a logistics process specialist with over 13 years in logistics, including at some of the biggest freight forwarders in the world.
In short: Accessorial charges are extras billed on top of the freight rate, such as detention (waiting time in Europe), layover, truck ordered not used, extra stops, tail lift, storage, tolls and fuel surcharge. To get paid, name each one with its billing basis on the quote, log it the same day and keep proof.
In more detail: the table below lists 25 common extras with the US name, the European or UK name, when each applies, how it is usually billed (per hour, per day, per stop, flat or at cost) and the proof that stops a dispute.
It gives billing bases, not prices. Rates depend on your lane, equipment and contract, so set your own and put them on the quote.
Use the names your customers use. A US shipper expects 'detention'; a German or Polish customer expects 'waiting time'. The basis column shows how the charge is usually calculated. Your own contract decides.
| # | Charge | US name | EU / UK name | When it applies | Usual basis | Proof needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Waiting at loading or unloading | Detention | Waiting time; standing time (UK) | The truck is held at pickup or delivery past the agreed free time. | Per hour (or part hour) after free time | Arrival and departure times on the BOL or CMR, telematics or tachograph record, time-stamped message |
| 2 | Overnight delay | Layover | Overnight standing; night out (UK) | The truck cannot load or unload the same day and waits overnight. | Per day or per night | Written appointment change, driver log or tachograph record |
| 3 | Cancelled after dispatch | Truck ordered not used (TONU) | Cancellation charge; failed collection | The load is cancelled or not ready after the truck was sent. | Flat fee; sometimes plus distance driven empty | Order confirmation, dispatch time, cancellation time in writing |
| 4 | Failed delivery | Redelivery | Failed delivery; redelivery | The receiver is closed, absent or refuses, and the goods go back or come again. | Flat per attempt, or per mile or km | Delivery note with reason, photo, call log |
| 5 | Extra stop | Stop-off charge | Additional drop or collection | More pickups or deliveries than the quote. | Per stop | Order with stop list, signed POD per stop |
| 6 | Change of destination | Reconsignment or diversion | Re-routing; change of delivery address | The customer changes the delivery address after pickup. | Flat fee plus extra miles or km | Written instruction from the customer |
| 7 | Driver loads or unloads | Driver assist; driver unload | Driver loading; handballing (UK) | The driver does the handling instead of the site staff. | Flat per load, or per hour | Note signed on the POD |
| 8 | Third-party unloading | Lumper fee | Unloading fee at receiver | The receiver requires a paid unloading service. | Pass-through at cost, plus admin fee if agreed | Receipt from the unloading service |
| 9 | Tail lift | Liftgate | Tail lift | No dock at pickup or delivery; a tail-lift vehicle is needed. | Per pickup or delivery | Booking note, driver confirmation |
| 10 | Private address | Residential delivery | Private or home delivery | Pickup or delivery at a home or non-commercial address. | Per stop | Address type on the order, POD |
| 11 | Restricted site | Limited access | Restricted access | Sites such as farms, schools, construction sites or secure areas. | Per stop | Address and site type on the order |
| 12 | Carry beyond the door | Inside delivery | Delivery beyond kerb; two-person delivery | Goods carried inside, upstairs or to a named room. | Per stop or per item | POD with the service noted |
| 13 | Booked time slot | Appointment or notify before delivery | Pre-advice; time-slot booking | The receiver needs a call or a booked slot before delivery. | Flat per shipment | Call log or booking confirmation |
| 14 | Outside normal hours | After-hours, weekend or holiday | Out-of-hours; weekend surcharge | Pickup or delivery at night, on weekends or holidays, at the customer's request. | Flat, or a percentage of the freight rate | Customer request in writing, POD time |
| 15 | Sort and label | Sort and segregate | Sorting; re-labelling | Mixed freight has to be split by order, size or address. | Per piece or per hour | Count and time noted on the POD or warehouse record |
| 16 | Storage | Storage | Storage; warehousing | Goods held past the agreed free days. | Per pallet per day or week | Warehouse in and out dates |
| 17 | Fuel adjustment | Fuel surcharge (FSC) | Fuel surcharge; diesel clause | Fuel price moves away from the base price in the contract. | Percentage or per mile or km, from a named index and date | Index value on the date used and the formula from the contract |
| 18 | Road charges | Tolls | Tolls; road user charges; congestion charges | Toll roads, bridges or city charges not in the rate. | At cost | Toll or charge statement for the trip |
| 19 | Ferry or tunnel | Ferry fee | Ferry or tunnel crossing | A sea or tunnel crossing not included in the rate. | At cost, or flat per crossing | Crossing ticket or statement |
| 20 | Load cover | Tarping | Sheeting (UK); tarpaulin | Flatbed or open loads must be covered. | Flat per load | Booking note, photo of the covered load |
| 21 | Dangerous goods | Hazmat | ADR surcharge | The load contains dangerous goods. | Flat per shipment or a percentage | Dangerous goods note from the shipper |
| 22 | Temperature control | Reefer or protect from freeze | Temperature-controlled surcharge | Goods must be kept chilled, frozen or above freezing. | Per load or per day | Booking with set temperature, temperature record |
| 23 | Oversize or overweight | Oversize or overweight; permits and escorts | Abnormal load; permits and escort | Load exceeds normal size or weight limits. | Permits and escorts at cost, plus a flat fee | Permit, escort invoice, load dimensions |
| 24 | Weight or class correction | Reweigh or reclassification | Re-weighing; volume or loading-metre correction | Actual weight, size or class is more than declared. | Difference at the agreed rate | Scale ticket, measurement record, photo |
| 25 | Border or customs delay | Border or customs hold | Border waiting time | The truck waits at a border or for customs clearance not caused by the carrier. | Per hour after free time, or per day | Border arrival and release times, customs documents |
Container work has its own extras (demurrage, container detention, chassis), set by shipping lines and terminals. They follow the same rule: name them, log them, keep proof.
The extras that slip are not the big ones like oversize permits, which everyone plans for. They are the small ones that happen on the road and are reported by phone, if at all.
| Extra | Why it slips | What stops it |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting time / detention | The driver mentions it on the phone; nobody writes the times down. | Arrival and departure times on every POD, logged the same day. |
| Driver loading or unloading | The driver just helps to get away faster. | A line on the POD signed by the site, and a rule that the driver calls it in. |
| Extra stops | Added by phone on the day; the invoice uses the original order. | Every change confirmed in writing and added to the job. |
| Failed delivery and redelivery | Treated as 'our problem' and quietly redone. | A reason code on the delivery note and a photo. |
| Tolls, ferries and unloading fees paid by the driver | The receipt sits in the cab or in expenses, not on the job. | Receipts attached to the job number before the invoice. |
| Storage past the free days | Nobody counts the days once the goods are in. | In and out dates on the warehouse record, checked at invoice. |
| Fuel surcharge updates | The percentage on the invoice is last quarter's. | One person updates it on a fixed day from the named index. |
For a worked example of what this costs and the four-step fix, see unbilled waiting time, detention and storage.
If the quote does not say how an extra is charged, the customer can fairly refuse it. Add an exclusions block to every quote. It lists what the rate does not include and how each extra is charged. Fill in your own rates.
Not included in this rate. Charged if they occur:
Times are taken from the delivery document, telematics or the driver's record. Extras are invoiced with the freight.
Two printable checklists list the extras to name in every quote, what to agree and the proof to collect. One uses European terms, one uses US terms.
EU checklist (PDF) US checklist (PDF)
Want to know what your own company leaks on extras? The free check estimates it from simple questions about your jobs and rates.
A quote template with the exclusions block, an Excel extras log to record every extra the same day with proof, an invoice checklist and payment reminder emails, plus the written process from price request to payment. EU and US versions.
€49 (about $55) per kit, one-time. EU and US versions. Any 3 kits €99, all 6 kits €199. 14-day money-back guarantee.
Charges for services or delays outside the base freight rate, such as waiting time, extra stops, tail lift, storage, tolls or fuel surcharge. They are billed on top of the rate when the quote or contract allows it.
Detention is paid per hour when the truck waits past the free time at pickup or delivery. Layover is paid per day when the wait runs so long, usually overnight, that the truck loses the day.
Usually 'waiting time', and in the UK often 'standing time'. In German it is 'Standgeld'. The meaning is the same: time the truck waits beyond the agreed loading or unloading time.
You can ask, but the customer can fairly dispute it. Name every chargeable extra and its billing basis in an exclusions block on the quote, and get written acceptance.
Arrival and departure times written on the bill of lading, CMR or delivery note, ideally signed by the site, backed by telematics, tachograph or a time-stamped message. Log it the same day.
It is usually listed with them, but it works differently: it is a percentage or per-mile or per-km amount linked to a named fuel price index. Put the index, base price and review date in the contract.
Truck ordered not used: a flat charge when a truck is dispatched but the load is cancelled or not ready. In Europe it is usually called a cancellation charge or failed collection.
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