Following the carrier's return instructions
The carrier decides where its empties go back, and the answer can differ from the terminal where the box was picked up. At busy ports, return locations can change daily, and a terminal may stop taking empties for a given carrier or size for a while. Check the return instructions on the day of the move. An empty taken to the wrong place may be refused, costing a wasted trip.
Proof that the box is back
The empty return is only finished when the facility records it. Keep evidence until the carrier's invoices for the box are settled, because detention disputes usually turn on the exact return time. CargoScope's import milestone emails include the empty container return, which gives the team a dated record alongside the gate paperwork. If tracking still shows no gate-in days after the trucker reports the return, raise it with the carrier promptly.
- The empty gate-in event in the carrier's tracking
- The interchange receipt issued at the gate
- Photos of the container's condition, if your team takes them
No open return location
Sometimes there is no open return location, or no appointment slot to use it. Record each attempt with the date and the instruction you were given, and ask the carrier for an alternative or for relief on detention. If a nearby exporter needs the same equipment, a street turn may solve the problem. Meanwhile the chassis stays tied up under the box, which can add a separate charge.
Example
After a warehouse in Memphis unloads MSKU4830212, the trucker returns the empty to the depot named in the carrier's return instructions, and the empty gate-in closes the container's import trip.
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Questions
What does Empty Return mean?
Empty return is the delivery of an unloaded import container back to the terminal or depot that the carrier designates. The empty gate-in usually closes the import cycle and stops detention or per diem for that box.
Does the empty return stop detention charges?
Usually, yes. Most carriers stop detention or per diem when the empty is gated in at the designated location, but check the tariff and keep the interchange receipt as proof.
Who pays for damage found at empty return?
Damage beyond normal wear can be charged to the party that had the box, under the carrier's tariff or the interchange agreement. Condition photos at pickup and return help settle who is responsible.