How do I calculate detention time in hours?

Take the time from when the clock starts to departure, subtract the free time, and round down to your broker's step. 4 hours 20 minutes at the stop with 2 hours free is 2 hours 20 minutes, or 2.25 hours in 15-minute steps.

Does detention start at arrival or at the appointment?

It depends on the broker. Published terms include starting 2 hours after the scheduled appointment, with the truck on time, and starting from the arrival check call. An early arrival usually waits for the appointment. Your rate con decides.

How do brokers round detention time?

Their terms differ, so the calculator bills exact minutes or 15, 30 or 60-minute steps. It rounds down, so the claim never asks for more than the times show.

Can I work out a wait of more than 24 hours?

Yes. Set the days between arrival and departure. A wait that long usually becomes a layover charge as well; add it on its own line.

What is detention time in trucking?

The time a truck waits at a shipper or receiver beyond the free time on the rate con, usually 2 hours, billed by the hour.

Do I count from the gate or the dock door?

Use the times the broker will accept: usually the in and out times written on the signed BOL or POD, which is why brokers ask facilities to note them.

Can I add the lumper fee?

Yes, as a reimbursement with the receipt. Many brokers pay it only when it is approved on the load.

Why are detention claims refused?

Missing in and out times, times that do not match the paperwork, no notice to the broker, or a late request.

No. The calculator runs in your browser and nothing you enter is stored or sent.

Free tool · Detention and lumper

Detention calculator: what is the wait worth?

Two and a half hours at the dock. Nobody wrote the times down, so nobody billed it.

A free truck detention pay calculator that turns a wait into a claim:

Billable time after your free time, at your hourly rate
Lumper fees added, for one total for the stop
A claim note with the times, ready to copy to the broker

Free, no sign-up. Nothing you enter is saved.

Work out a claim

Load or reference numberAppointment

ArrivedLeft

Days between arrival and departureFree time (hours)Use the free time on your rate con; 2 hours is the most common.Rate per hour ($)Use the rate on your rate con.Bill inRounded down to the step, so the claim never asks for more than the times show.Lumper paid ($)

Layover daysLayover amount a day ($)

TONU amount ($)Your cost per hour ($)

Time at the stop: 0:00
Billable detention: 0:00
Detention: $0.00
Lumper: $0.00
Total for this stop: $0.00

Claim note

Most brokers ask for notice before free time runs out, in and out times on the signed paperwork, and the request within 24 hours to two business days (published broker carrier guides).

How is truck detention calculated?

Billable detention = time from when the clock starts to departure − free time, rounded down to your broker's billing step. Detention pay = billable hours × your hourly rate.

The stop. Appointment 8:00, arrived 7:40, left 12:20, 2 hours free, your rate $50 an hour, 15-minute steps.
The clock. It starts at 8:00, the appointment, because the truck was early: 4 hours 20 minutes to departure.
Billable time. 4:20 minus 2:00 free is 2:20, rounded down to 2:15, or 2.25 hours.
The claim. 2.25 × $50 = $112.50. Counted from arrival instead, it would be 2:30 and $125, which is the kind of difference a broker sends back.

Put the same times in the calculator above and the claim note reads the same.

What if the truck arrived early or late?

Published broker terms differ. One large broker starts detention 2 hours after the scheduled appointment and pays only if the truck was on time; another counts from the arrival check call. An early arrival usually waits for the appointment before the clock starts, and a late one often loses detention altogether. Your rate con decides, so check it before you bill.

When does detention become layover?

When the wait runs long enough that the truck is out of service for the day, most rate cons switch to a layover charge per day; one large broker's published terms switch after 5 hours. The detention page compares detention, layover and TONU.

Key terms

Free time The wait included in the rate, usually 2 hours.
Billable time The wait after free time, rounded to the billing step.
Billing step How brokers round: exact minutes, or 15, 30 or 60 minutes.
Appointment The scheduled time on the rate con; early arrivals usually wait for it.
Layover A daily charge when a load is held to the next day.
TONU Truck ordered, not used: a flat charge when a load is cancelled after dispatch.
Lumper fee What a loading or unloading service charges at the dock.

Does it calculate lumper fees?

It adds the lumper fee you paid to the claim, with a note that the receipt is attached. It does not estimate what a lumper service will charge; the service sets that at the dock. How lumper fees are billed back is on the detention page.

Why is most detention never paid?

Because the times were never written down, the broker heard too late, or the claim went in after the deadline. In one US study, carriers invoiced 75 per cent of their detention and were paid on 55 per cent of those invoices, about 41 per cent in all (ATRI, 2024).

How we capture the times and send the claim

Which of these happen in your office?

Tick the ones that are yours. They go with your request.

Detention and lumper

No in and out times on the paperwork. The receiver did not write them, and the driver did not ask.The fix: The driver is asked for the times at check-in and check-out by WhatsApp, and they go on the load the moment the driver answers.This happens to us
The broker hears about it too late. Free time ran out an hour ago, and nobody called.The fix: A notice to the broker drafted as free time runs down, counted from the driver's check-in.This happens to us
Lumper receipts in the driver's pocket. No receipt, no reimbursement.The fix: The receipt photographed at the dock, filed to the load and added to the invoice package.This happens to us
Short waits never billed. Ninety minutes here, two and a half hours there, not worth the trouble.The fix: Every wait logged against the load, so you decide what to bill with the numbers in front of you.This happens to us
The claim goes in after the deadline. Some brokers allow 24 hours, and by then the driver is two provinces away.The fix: The claim drafted the day the truck leaves, with the times and receipts attached, inside each broker's window.This happens to us
Claims sent, never paid. Only about half of detention invoices get paid.The fix: Every claim tracked to payment, with a reminder drafted when the broker's terms run out.This happens to us

You ticked 0 of 6.

Send these with a free discovery request

Questions about detention pay

How is truck detention calculated?: Time at the stop minus the free time, multiplied by the hourly rate. Arrival and departure must match the times on the signed paperwork.
How do I calculate detention time in hours?: Take the time from when the clock starts to departure, subtract the free time, and round down to your broker's step. 4 hours 20 minutes at the stop with 2 hours free is 2 hours 20 minutes, or 2.25 hours in 15-minute steps.
Does detention start at arrival or at the appointment?: It depends on the broker. Published terms include starting 2 hours after the scheduled appointment, with the truck on time, and starting from the arrival check call. An early arrival usually waits for the appointment. Your rate con decides.
How do brokers round detention time?: Their terms differ, so the calculator bills exact minutes or 15, 30 or 60-minute steps. It rounds down, so the claim never asks for more than the times show.
Can I work out a wait of more than 24 hours?: Yes. Set the days between arrival and departure. A wait that long usually becomes a layover charge as well; add it on its own line.
What is detention time in trucking?: The time a truck waits at a shipper or receiver beyond the free time on the rate con, usually 2 hours, billed by the hour.
Do I count from the gate or the dock door?: Use the times the broker will accept: usually the in and out times written on the signed BOL or POD, which is why brokers ask facilities to note them.
Can I add the lumper fee?: Yes, as a reimbursement with the receipt. Many brokers pay it only when it is approved on the load.
Why are detention claims refused?: Missing in and out times, times that do not match the paperwork, no notice to the broker, or a late request.
Is my data saved?: No. The calculator runs in your browser and nothing you enter is stored or sent.

Bill every wait, free check

(647) 360-6292

Tick what happens in your office and leave your details. Free discovery counts a week of your stops and shows which waits were never billed.

Detention pay and lumper fees Proof of delivery and paperwork CVOR record checker Missed quote calculator

Sources

Last reviewed: October 2026. Service details verified against our current offer.