Something a little distressing has been brought to my attention recently. The appearance of a new charge on the freight bill:
The Freight Reweight Charge. When did this happen? In all my years in the freight buniness, I’ve never heard of a reweigh charge on a bill before. Evidently, this fee can range anywhere from $20-$50 depending on the freight carriers that have begun to implement this fee.
The reweigh fee on the freight bill has only recently been popping up with a few of the more bold freight carriers. I just can’t see how these freight carriers can justify this new fee. Generally when a freight reweigh is called for, it’s to correct the weight because the freight carrier believes that the shipment is heaveir than the customer stated. I haven’t ever heard of a trucking company calling for a reweigh because they felt that the shipment was estimated as being lighter than the customer stated. That said, when a reweigh is called for you can expect to be charged more on your freight bill even before paying any reweigh fee.
Now again, as I’ve said in the past, shame on the customer who ball parks the weight or dims of their shipment because of ignorance or trying to round down their shipment’s weight in the hopes of getting a better price. You’re not usualy going to get one over on these guys and you’re just asking for trouble down the line when a revised freight chage shows up in the mail, however, this isn’t grounds to double charge customers. Especially because this new re-weigh charge was never part of a freight bill until very recently.
I say to anyone who sees this new fee on their freight bill to contact their agent or broker immediately to dispute this new fee as the freight carrier will get their money from the reweigh itself. At very least demand a certified document that explains the freight reweigh for your approval.

Today I wanted to go over the “Limited Access” accessorial fee you may see on your freight quote. Limited Access ( or LTD Access for short ) refers to a location that is difficult for the truck driver to get to. Locations that fall under limited access would include: Amusement Parks, Construction Sites, Farms, Mines, Mini Storage, Places of Worship, Schools, Correctional Facilities and Military Bases.

Due to the inconvenience of getting freight in and out of these types of locations, which slows down the driver on their overall route, you will be charged a Limited Access accessorial fee on your freight quote. Depending on the freight broker or carrier you’re dealing with, you can expect to see a fee of anywhere from $50-$80. Again, as I say with any over priced accessorial charge,  if it’s any more than this, I would suggest at least attempting to negotiate this fee down.

In an effort to help you find the best freight quote last week, I decided to pick 4 freight companies online and have them give a freight quote for the same item. Some companies I used their online instant freight quote. Others I phoned in an spoke with an agent.  Here were the parameters I used:

Boxed item rated as FAK Class 125 at 250 lbs.

Origin: San Diego, CA 92101 Commercial Location with Forklift and/or dock

Destination: Atlanta, GA 30303 Residential Location with Liftgate

I discarded any quote that didn’t offer freight insurance or was covered for less than $5/ lb.

Here are the numbers:

FreightShippingDirect.com - $313.88

FreightShippingCenter.com - $433.90

FreightCenter.com - $460.34

Freight101.com - $468.12

As a continuing part on my series explaining accessorial charges, today I’ll go into Residential Pickup and Delivery Charges.

The reason for Residential Delivery and / or Pickup Charges for non commercial locations is due to the fact that there are a number of factors that impede a prompt delivery or pickup to the location. The reasons can vary from there being no loading docks or forklifts, the streets may be narrower and harder to negotiate in and out of for the truck driver and as general rule of thumb it’s simply just more difficult to pick up and drop off shipments in non commercial environments. Typically you can also expect a liftgate charge attached because there isn’t a loading dock for the driver to back into as discussed in my previous post.

You can expect fees for residential charges to range anywhere from about $50-$100 tacked onto your total freight quote or bill.

Once you’ve received your freight quote, you may see what are referred to as Accessorial Charges that are additional fees listed on the freight quote. In an effort to clarify your freight quote I will begin a series of posts that will explain what each of these fees mean and how they effect your delivery or pick up.

The Liftgate Charge is a fairly common accessorial fee. What is a liftgate? A liftgate is a hydraulic  accessorial device used to lower the pallet to from the end of the truck to the ground level.

Typically this is used for items leaving from or going to residential locations or those locations where there is no loading dock or there is no forklift available.

If you do not opt for a liftgate, the driver is only responsible for taking your shipment to the end of the truck and you must take care of gettig the pallet off of the truck.

You can expect to be charged anywhere from $50-$125 for the liftgate fee depending on your freight rate structure. If the liftgate accessorial charge is any higher than this, you shoud consider attempting to negotiate for a lower liftgate charge.

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Having worked in the trucking industry for many years now I have seen just about everything the shipping and freight industry has to offer — the good and the bad.

Back in the day (as my grandkids say) all LTL (less than truckload) carrier rates were based on published tariffs and no discounts were applied. What the teamsters wanted to charge that year is what you paid - government regulation protected the carriers from competition and the teamsters union was able to control the industry through master agreements with all the major freight transport companies.

In 1979, that all changed thanks to Jimmy Carter and the Deregulation Bill, that protective shield of regulation was stripped away and a lot of the bigger carriers began dropping like flies. Ringsby, Truck Lines, Denver-Chicago, Leeway, ICX, Transcon, ONC, Delta Truck Lines and McLean were some of the bigger names that fell in post-deregulation America. With the frontiers now open, a lot of smaller, regionalcarriers began movie towards the West Coast and the North East and the compeition kicked in to high gear. Some companies began to offer insane discount levels of 45%-50%…now, they were also increasing their rates by similar levels.

This caused the development of FAK (freight all kinds) pricing. The term FAK means a mixture of different product types delivered in a combined load to a single or limited number of destinations. Instead of figuring out the classification and rate for each product, carriers determine an average rated which is applied to the entire shipment. This makes this easier for everyone involved and makes creating a bill of lading or freight bill much more simple. Interestingly enough, the development of FAK priving coincided with a decrease in the number of headaches I had every day.

As a product of the old school of freight shipping, I think the 1960s and 1970s were the best years to work in transportation because management and union employees were forced to work more ethically together…and, unfortunately, that’s not something you find very often in companies nowadays.

Ok, I think I’ve rambled on enough for today.

Over the past few weeks I watched the Fuel Surcharge rapidly creep up to an alarming 37.90% with some freight carriers! With the price of oil skyrocketing, it’s only to be expected that the freight carriers will pass along their increasing costs to you. The good thing is, that even with all the fuel surcharge price increases, you’ll still be able to find a 3PL that will be able to secure incredibly low rates. All you have to do is call around. Don’t settle on one company. No matter what discounts they give you, it’s the bottom line price that counts!

Well, first let’s break everything down into its basic elements. Logistics in a nutshell is the management and overseeing of the transporting, handling, warehousing and packaging of goods from an origin to a destination for a customer.

Third Party Logistics Providers or 3PL for short is a company that is hired by another company or outsourced and contracted to manage any number or all of the elements that fall under logistics.

Most Third Party Logistics Providers have negotiated their freight rate structure. Some 3PLs have negotiated directly with freight carriers and many and more act as independent agents or brokers because they are one step removed from directly being able to negotiating with top line freight carriers. Therefore, these freight brokers or agents utilize 3PLs that have the clout to deal direct with freight carriers.

Basically it works like this: You have the major freight carriers, you have Third Party Logistics Providers and below that you have independent brokers and agents.

The top line freight carriers own their own trucks, warehouses, terminals and offices. The 3PL is a business with offices, employees and sometimes even own a warehouse. Brokers usually work out of their homes and are just a go between you and the freight carrier or more often than not a 3PL. Usually; the best rates will come from the 3PL because of their direct dealings with the major freight carriers. However, you’ll only find the best price by calling around and comparing freight quotes.

Howdy Folks,

The Freight Doctor wanted to give you some insight about which type of Freight Company will usually come up with the best freight rates.

Basically it works like this: You have the major freight carriers, you have Third Party Logistics Providers and below that you have independent brokers and agents.

The top line freight carriers own their own trucks, warehouses, terminals and offices. The 3PL is a business with offices, employees and sometimes even own a warehouse. Brokers usually work out of their homes and are just a go between you and the freight carrier or more often than not a 3PL. So my answer is usually the best rates will come from the 3PL because of their direct dealings with the major freight carriers.

From there, you’ll have to find the most honest and generous 3PL with the best rate structures from the major freight carriers. Do your research! You’ll find a wide spread of pricing within the freight industry.

When requesting a quote, remember to have as much information as possible. Giving ballpark figures will only add time, as adjustments will have to be made. Here are some tips so you can get as accurate a quote as possible:

• Have exact measurements and total weight: Don’t guesstimate. There is no such thing as a standard pallet size, so have the measurements for that as well if it’s going to be traveling that way. Freight Companies use inches not feet, so be ready with that information as well. If there is any doubt by the freight carrier from what you have told the freight booker, they will reweigh and measure the item and if it doesn’t match up then they’ll have to charge you the difference.
• Have your Origin and Destination Locations with Zip Codes: There may be a closer terminal than if the person guesses by using the main terminal in the city it’s going to.
• Know your commodity: Be ready to give details about what type of product the item you will be shipping is. If you know the Class that this item falls under from previous freight quotes or shipments, even better!
• Be sure to know the type of locations of the origin and destination your load is going to: Is it commercial? Is it going to a school, hospital or military facility? Do any of the locations have a dock drop or if it’s residential will there need to be a lift gate used because the item is heavy? This is very important, as it will determine if any fees need to be added or waived.
• Do you have any quotes or a rate structure with an existing freight company? It’s always good to mention to whomever’s quoting you that you have already been quoted prices they need to meet or beat. They want your business and if they have the room to give bigger discounts to earn you as an account, they’ll do it. Please note, if the freight quotes you are giving are too low, they may require you to fax proof in order to justify being competitive with your other freight quotes or existing freight rates and discounts.
• How soon does your load need to be booked? Generally if you can get your information to the person booking the load before noon at the origin location they can have it picked up same day in the afternoon. There are also expedited rates if you need the load to arrive at its destination sooner than the normal travel time.
• Do either the Origin or Destination locations need to be alerted by the freight carrier that they are en route to either location? In most instances, the dispatcher out of the terminal closest to either location will call 24-48 hours prior to pickup or delivery so as to set up a window of time with the appropriate party. However, in some cases, a person at either or both locations needs to be called to let the driver in or open up the facility or to be home. Let the person giving you the freight quote know so that they can add this into the quote.

 Call during the morning and early afternoon: It’s always best to call earlier if at all possible. This is because all the freight carrier’s offices operate during regular business hours. If you’ve called too late in the day and the person giving you a quote needs to speak with someone at the freight carrier they use, it will push everything over into the next day.