Dunnage. Materials such as timber battens, boards, mats, plastic sheets, paper and even inflatable bags may be necessary to prevent cargo from shifting, to prevent sweat damage to the cargo and to separate different lots of cargo.

Documentary fraud. This occurs when a commercial party negotiates with a person who turns out to be dishonest and a cheat. A documentary credit may pay for the commercial transaction, for example, where an honest buyer opens a letter of credit based on negotiations between himself and a cheat. The cheat presents forged documents to the advising bank and is paid. The bill of lading features very prominently in documentary fraud because of its very great importance as a document of title. Because of this potential, alternative systems are being developed, such as the use of "sea waybills" and "EDI" or "Electronic Data Interchange" where data about the goods and the mode of their transport are exchanged by electronic means.

Deductions can only be allowed if they were originally included in the gross tonnage:

Delivery orders: At the request of shippers, consignees or endorsees, delivery orders may sometimes be issued by the agents of the shipowner for part of the goods shipped under bills of lading.

Displacement scale. The displacement scale indicates:

Days on demurrage. These are days by which the agreed number of laydays for loading or discharge is exceeded. In some charters a limited fixed number of days on demurrage is agreed, in addition to the laytime allowed. Shipowners are entitled to damages for detention if, after demurrage days have expired, further delay is experienced.

Despatch-All laytime saved (LTS).This expression generally means the same as "all working time saved".

Distress freight. When a ship is in a berth to load cargo but the cargo offered by shippers does not meet the owner's or charterer's expectations, and the owner or charterer experiences difficulty in securing completion cargo at original freight rates, they may resort to booking cargo at very low rates ("distress rates") to fill up the remaining space rather than be forced to despatch the vessel with vacant space. This may have an effect on the scheduled sailing time: the vessel may continue to receive cargo beyond the sailing time until the cargo compartments are fully loaded or the ship is "dawn to her marks", that is, loaded to the permitted "load lines".

Deeptanks. In order to increase the water ballast capacity; many older, multi-deck cargo ships are equipped with deeptanks running from the tank top of the double bottom to the lower or upper tweendeck and extending over the entire breadth. As a rule the deeptanks were constructed amidships forward of the engine room or at both ends. The reason for this was to provide capacity for water ballast, thus improving the draught but with hardly any change in trim.

Distance freight. Cargo may sometimes have to be discharged at a port other than the original port of destination, for instance if a vessel runs the risk of being frozen in by ice and the master considers it prudent to deliver the cargo at the nearest safe port.

DAF (delivered at frontier)

DAF DELIVERED AT FRONTIER
(... named place)

Disbursements. This expression covers all payments made by the ship’s agents for port charges, stevedoring expenses, tug hire, customs fees, stores, bunkers, water, etc., on behalf of owners. The agents may charge a certain disbursements’ commission on such advances, e.g., 2½ per cent.

Deviation. Under the Marine Insurance Act, if a ship, without lawful excuse, deviates from the voyage contemplated by the policy, the insurer is discharged from liability from the time of deviation, and it is immaterial that the ship may have regained her route before any loss occurs.

Document of title. In modern international trade and shipping this is probably the most important characteristic of the bill of lading. A "document of title" is a document that enables the holder (the person who "possesses" it) to deal with the goods described in it as if he was the owner. "Title" is the right to ownership. "Ownership" can be explained as the right of using, altering, disposing of (that is, selling) and destroying the goods. This "ownership" or "title" can be transferred by a formal transfer of the document, such transfer being an "endorsement" and/or delivery of the document itself.

Despatch days. Days saved in the loading or discharge of the vessel within the time allowed under the charterparty may be called "despatch days".