Rizwan, first of all pls check whether the bill of lading is issued “To Order of Seller” or “To Order of Shipper“..??
Bills of Lading are normally consigned To Order of Shipper since it maybe difficult to get the endorsement of the seller because in a lot of cases the seller, exporter and shipper in a shipment maybe different entities..
My answer is on the assumption that the bill is consigned To Order of Shipper and that the shipper and seller are the same and also that the shipper has endorsed the bill to you, making you the receiver of the cargo..
Back to the case, the seller endorsed the cargo to you and sent the original bills of lading late to you.. The shipping line promptly charged you for the demurrage because you cleared the cargo late..
From the shipping line’s perspective, they are right in doing so since you are the nominated receiver of this cargo and you cleared the cargo late..
Even though the shipment is under CFR terms according to which the shipper books the cargo with the shipping line, the shipping line may not charge the shipper for demurrage because
1) The contract between the shipping line and the shipper is a “contract of carriage” and not a “sales contract“.. CFR and (other Incoterms®) are commercial terms used in a sales contract between the seller and buyer..