Letter · Maritime, Shipping & Transport
Demurrage claim letter with laytime statement (voyage charter)
Owners' claim to charterers for demurrage under a voyage charter: the charter terms relied on, notice of readiness, laytime allowed and used, exceptions, time on demurrage, the amount, and the supporting documents needed inside any claims time bar.
- Kind
- Letter. A letter or email you adapt and send.
- Where it applies
- Australia, International / cross-border
- AI use
- Yellow AI can help in set ways. A lawyer checks specific points before use.
- Law stated as at
- 18 October 2026
- Status
- Maintained. Checked on 18 October 2026 against the 2 authorities it cites, for Australia and International / cross-border.
- Version
- 1
- Source
- Written for this library
When to use it
Use after completion of loading or discharge when laytime has been exceeded, to present a documented claim before the charter's claims or documentation time bar expires. Charterers' lawyers can use the same structure to check and answer a claim.
How AI may be used
AI may build the laytime statement from the statement of facts and the charter terms; a lawyer or claims handler checks every time entry, exception and rate against the source documents before the claim is sent.
AI may
- Extract laytime, demurrage rate, notice of readiness, exceptions and time bar clauses from the charter and the recap
- Turn the signed statement of facts into a dated, timed laytime table with running totals
- List the documents the charter's time bar clause requires and show which are on file
AI must not
- Must not decide whether notice of readiness was valid, or whether an exception or interruption applies, where the documents are unclear
- Must not apply laytime exceptions to time on demurrage unless the charter specifically says so
- Must not send the claim; it goes out only after the lawyer or claims handler has signed off the calculation
The lawyer checks
- The charter terms used (laytime, rate, notice, exceptions, incorporation of any BIMCO definitions) are those of the final fixture, including rider clauses
- Every time entry matches the statement of facts signed by the master and agents, and disputed periods are identified
- The claim and all documents the time bar clause requires are presented to the right party before the bar date
Method: how the Green, Yellow and Red levels are decided. This is guidance for planning, not legal advice.
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