Charterer: Meaning in Shipping
A charterer is the party that hires a ship, or space on a ship, to carry a cargo. It is the customer side of a charter.
What a charterer is
In shipping, the charterer is the company that hires a ship under a charter party, the contract of hire. It is usually the owner of the cargo, a trader, a producer, a miner, an energy or food company, or a company that moves cargo for others. The other side, the company that provides the ship, is the ship operator. A charterer can also be a broker-charterer that hires a ship to re-let it to another party.
Types of charterer
A voyage charterer hires the ship for one cargo from named ports and pays a freight; see voyage charter. A time charterer hires the ship for a period and pays a daily hire, and decides where the ship goes; see time charter. A trip time charterer hires the ship for one trip at a daily rate; see trip time charter. A sub-charterer hires a ship from another charterer, not from the ship operator.
What a charterer has to do
Provide the cargo of the agreed quantity in the agreed laycan, name safe loading and discharging ports, pay the freight or hire as agreed, and load and discharge within the time allowed. If the time is used up, the charterer pays demurrage. The laycan, the laytime and the notice of readiness are the main time rules.
Charterer and ship operator
The charterer needs a ship; the ship operator needs cargo. Both agree the terms of the voyage in a charter party and keep their own duties: the ship operator keeps the ship in good order and navigates it, and the charterer provides the cargo and pays. Read ship operator, owner and disponent owner explained to see the parties on the ship side.
On Shipfixing
A charterer posts a ship request with the cargo, the ports, the dates and the type of ship, and ship operators answer with offers. See how to charter a ship.
Post your ship request
Shipfixing connects charterers and ship operators. We scan for suitable ships. Voyage requests for ships below 10,000 DWT need no signup and no membership.
Related guides
More in glossary
- Trip Time Charter
- Contract of Affreightment (COA)
- Time Charter vs Voyage Charter
- Laycan
- Laytime
- Demurrage and Despatch
- Notice of Readiness
- Ship broker
- Ship fixing and fixture
- Bulk carrier
- Deadweight tonnage (DWT)
- Bill of lading
- Freight
- Baltic Dry Index
- Lien
- Bunkers
- FIO and FIOS
- Cancelling date
- Ton-mile
- Statement of facts
- Letter of indemnity
- Ballast voyage
- Lighterage
- Stem
Shipfixing is a digital platform. We are not a ship broker, ship agent or carrier, and we are not a party to any charter.