Shipping faces unprecedented operational complexity, yet many companies still rely on fragmented systems and manual processes to manage critical voyage data. This disconnect between technological capability and operational reality creates significant commercial vulnerabilities that demand urgent attention.
The Challenge of Claims Management
Voyage claims are a major commercial risk. Yet today, performance data is still not consistently automated or integrated. This makes it difficult to analyse what went wrong, and when. In many cases, the root causes of delays, fuel overruns, or performance issues are discovered only after the voyage ends, when it’s too late to take action.
Disputes often arise due to mismatches in fuel consumption data or unclear responsibilities. These situations lead to commercial losses, strained counterparty relationships, and time-consuming investigations.
Existing VMS are primarily built to track voyage P&L. But critical operational workflows such as emissions compliance, port disbursement approvals, or bunker claims are usually handled outside these systems. As a result, teams fall back on emails and spreadsheets to manage them. Due to fragmented data sources, finance teams often receive incomplete voyage details weeks after completion. By then, any chance to investigate overruns or resolve claims proactively has already passed.
When issues are spotted too late, corrective actions, such as speed changes or fuel re-optimisation, are no longer possible. This reactive approach limits accountability and erodes profit margins.
To manage claims effectively, teams need access to real-time performance data and clear audit trails across departments. Without it, operational blind spots persist and the cost of inaction compounds over time.
Regulatory Complexities
The regulatory landscape in shipping is evolving fast. New rules such as the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), FuelEU Maritime, and the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) have introduced new layers of complexity to commercial voyage management.
Real-time compliance tracking is now essential. However, many VMS are not built to support these new demands. They struggle to keep up with the changing operational, regulatory, and commercial realities of shipping.
One key challenge lies in legacy system limitations. These systems often lack the flexibility to quickly adapt to evolving regulatory requirements such as EU ETS, FuelEU Maritime, or CII, particularly from a payables and receivables standpoint within the charter party context. As a result, managing emissions exposure, and counterparty settlements often remains a manual and error-prone process.
There is also fragmentation in user needs. Teams across chartering, operations, procurement, and risk all require different compliance insights. Most systems cannot cater to these varied requirements in a unified way.
Some regulations also require a longer-term view. For example, CII and FuelEU compliance is measured on an annual basis, not voyage by voyage. This means operators need systems that can track cumulative carbon exposure across the year. But just as importantly, these systems must support a receivables and payables approach to carbon, enabling companies to invoice and settle carbon costs accurately with their counterparties, voyage on voyage.
While each of these challenges may seem minor in isolation, they can lead to an underutilisation of technology and inefficiencies in operations. For a voyage or across a fleet, they add up to significant commercial risk.
The convergence of claims management challenges and evolving regulatory demands requires a fundamental shift from reactive to proactive voyage management. Companies that integrate real-time data capabilities with comprehensive compliance tracking will gain decisive competitive advantages in an increasingly complex maritime landscape.
For further insight into the areas highlighted in this article, download our thought leadership report, Orchestrating Efficiency, created in partnership with GeoServe
