Charter Rate is the agreed cost of hiring a tanker. Spot charter rates, mostly negotiated in worldscale terms, are tariffs for the carriage of a single cargo from one specified port to another (including the return ballast journey) in the immediate future (generally within the next six weeks). Spot rates typically include all expenses of operating the vessel, from fuel to crew, but exclude costs related to the cargo (e.g. inspection fees). Time charter rates are a daily rate of hire over a fixed period, in which tanker owners pay for vessel expenses (such as maintenance and vessel insurance) and the charterer pays for voyage costs (such as bunkers).