Freight forwarders face a variety of surcharges as they navigate the complexities of transporting cargo. These charges, including congestion fees, seasonal charges, and security surcharges, are levied by carriers and terminal operators to cover additional costs for processing and transporting goods.
Congestion Fees
Congestion charges are imposed by carriers for additional costs they incur due to external factors such as high traffic volumes, infrastructure limitations, and regulatory procedures. These charges generally compensate for the extended use of equipment, additional labor hours, and prolonged occupancy of storage and handling facilities. Freight forwarders encounter such charges most frequently in major seaports where ships remain anchored for extended periods before unloading. Busy European ports experiencing vessel bunching such as Rotterdam, Hamburg, and Antwerp often impose congestion fees to cover added expenses associated with the use of additional equipment, extra labor shifts, and extended gate hours.
Seasonal Charges
Carriers and terminal operators impose seasonal charges in periods of high shipping volumes such as the pre-holiday season in late autumn and early winter when both e-commerce and retail experience spikes in consumer purchasing. Similarly, seasonal charges can be observed during agricultural peak seasons such as the wine harvests in regions like Bordeaux and Tuscany where there is a need to transport high volumes of sensitive cargo.
Ports, container terminals, airports, and rail operators frequently impose seasonal charges during peak periods. Airports, for example, implement these fees to cover additional labor, extra equipment, and temporary structure enhancements. Extra labor often includes ground handling staff, ramp agents, cargo supervisors, and load planners. Furthermore, airports may use additional equipment for which seasonal charges can be imposed, including pallet jacks, straddle carriers, reach stackers, and aircraft pushback tractors. A variety of structural enhancements are also used by airports during peak seasons. These can include temporary customs inspection stations, mobile security booths and trailers, and pop-up offices to handle the surge in documentation.
Security Charges
Security surcharges are implemented by carriers and operators to address the costs associated with enhancing security measures during periods of increased threat or heightened risk. In Europe, where cargo traffic is dense and the threat of theft and terrorism is a constant concern, these surcharges help maintain stringent security standards.
Such security surcharges may be imposed by seaports, airports, rail operators, trucking companies, and intermodal terminals to protect cargo and comply with regulatory requirements. Rail operators, for instance, may impose security charges on routes that transport high value or hazardous goods, those that pass through border areas, and routes connecting to rail interchange points.
Along these routes, they may invest in secure fencing and controlled access points to prevent unauthorized access. Furthermore, they may deploy extra security personnel such as K9 units, bridge and tunnel inspection patrols, trackside surveillance teams, and perimeter fence monitors.
Further measures to secure cargo in transit for which surcharges may apply include under-carriage scanning systems at key checkpoints to detect hidden threats or tampering attempts. Additionally, high-risk routes may be equipped with electromagnetic cargo scanning portals which verify container integrity by detecting unauthorized openings or structural modifications while the train is in motion.