Freight companies are finding more and more ways to get every penny out of us they can. Here’s a list of some common items that could trigger a ‘red flag’ and finding yourself with higher freight costs. By choosing these accessorial fees while creating the BOL vs. writing it in the ‘comments’ section, you can avoid surprise rebills.
- ‘MUST deliver by…’ The carrier may charge you for a ‘Guaranteed Shipment,’ even if their regular LTL service would have gotten it there in time. If you need it delivered by a certain day, choose the Guaranteed Service up front.
- ‘Keep from Freezing/Heat.’ Depending upon the time of year, you might want your freight kept at something more reasonable than the outdoor temperature for the current season. Carriers can and will do that, but without notifying them prior to booking the shipment, you may be surprised at the re-bill when they do provide the service. They otherwise assume your freight can stand the heat or cold.
- ‘Residential deliveries without a liftgate.’ Too many times carriers have gone out to residences and not been able to unload the freight because no liftgate had been requested. It’s then taken back to the terminal and brought back out with a liftgate, costing them time and money. Some carriers will AUTOMATICALLY put residential freight on liftgate trailers and charge you for it after the fact.
- ‘Notify prior to delivery.’ Most carriers will do this for no charge, but there are some out there that do charge for it.
While it may seem unfair the carriers can do this, these types of charges are typically spelled out in the pages and pages of their rules and regulations. Because of this, winning any fight over the charge is almost never going to happen. If you’re in doubt about a service, give us a call and we’ll be glad to help out.
