Dead freight as contractual damages: payment due for unfilled chartered space compensating loss of freight. Dead freight denotes an agreed or recoverable sum payable when a charterer ships less than the contracted cargo or otherwise fails the charterparty, functioning as unliquidated compensation for loss of freight rather than true freight. The measure is the difference between freight actually earned (including profit from third party goods) and the freight that would have been earned under full performance; the term is a convenient label for damages for breach of contract.