What are Common Parcel Audit Misconceptions?

Parcel auditing is a critical factor when managing the backend of the shipping process. It’s important to monitor parcel shipping costs and freight rates in order to catch any errors made by the carriers in their invoicing. 

When managing the shipping process of a company, don’t let these common parcel audit misconceptions fool you.
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1. It’s Easier to Complete Audits In-House
2. Audits Postpone Deliveries
3. Recognizing Audit Mistakes Causes Conflicts
4. Outsourcing Parcel Audits is too Expensive

1) It’s Easier to Complete Audits In-House

Small parcel auditing is not a quick and easy process. It takes a considerable amount of time and parcel pricing knowledge to sift through each parcel invoice in-house in order to identify errors. Once a mistake has been found, it is then a time-consuming process to file a claim with the carrier and then reconcile that the credit was actually received on a future invoice.   In-house auditing may also require advanced technology, due to the volume of shipments and complexity of the carrier pricing agreements, which can quickly become expensive.

Pro Tip: Outsourcing your parcel auditing service will give your staff the time to work on more important projects.  

2) Audits Postpone Deliveries

Some business owners think that auditing your parcels will postpone deliveries, but this just isn’t true. Especially since parcel auditing is done after the delivery has taken place. Parcel audits won’t postpone deliveries, but they are time sensitive. This is because, depending on the type of error found, you may only have 15 days to file your claim.

3) Recognizing Audit Mistakes Causes Conflicts

Many people don’t want to point out any mistakes they found during the audit process, because they don’t want to cause any issues with the carrier relationships. However, it should be a common business practice to recognize and reprove mistakes. It’s part of the carrier’s duty to ensure that parcels were delivered on time and that you are invoiced accurately according to the contract. As a reminder, the carriers have instituted these refund policies as part of their normal business practices, you are simply adhering to policies they have created and in some cases are contractually or legally bound to.

4) Outsourcing Parcel Audits is too Expensive

It’s time extensive and tedious to sort through hundreds, if not thousands of deliveries in-house. If it takes 3 minutes to audit 1 shipment, and if there are 1,000 shipments, that will take 50 hours, which is more than the average full-time work week. Most employees don’t have that kind of time on their hands. Outsourcing your parcel audits will save your staff time and help you get the most accurate refunds. As well, companies like ours work on a contingency basis, where we only get compensated once any claim has been credited to your account by either FedEx or UPS. If no errors are found, you owe us nothing! This also aligns our interests with yours in trying to maximize your return.

Don’t Believe Everything You Hear

It can be easy to believe these common parcel audit misconceptions but continue to educate yourself and your staff to ensure that you’re not believing a fallacy. Mistakes happen and must be tracked in order to reimburse lost revenue. It’s just a part of the shipping management process.

Are you interested in learning more about parcel auditing? Join the conversation to speak with our team about outsourcing your parcel audit needs.

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How Can You Save Money of Parcel Shipment Costs?

While you can’t change standard small parcel shipment costs, you can make some changes in your shipping methods to save as much money as possible. 

Here are some tips for business owners to help save money on small parcel shipment costs.
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1. Parcel Audit
2. Modern Shipping Software
3. A Flat Shipping Rate

1) Parcel Audit

Sort through your parcel invoices and track all of your expenses. More often than not, you will find some mistakes that will entitle you to a refund. You can do this in-house, but it can be time-consuming to manually go through each invoice. Consider outsourcing with a company experienced with parcel service refunds.

2) Modern Shipping Software

A transportation management system can be another way to save money on your shipping costs. A TMS tracks your shipments at every step. This can give you insight into competitors rates and allow you to print labels. Shipping software also has tracking solutions that show the progress of your shipments and keeps you updated on accurate delivery time.

3) A Flat Shipping Rate

While customers might prefer free shipping, this may not be the best, economical choice for your business. Depending on the size and quantity of the shipment, you may want to consider a flat shipping rate.

Pro Tip: Come up with a shipping price that will never cost your personal out-of-pocket money.

Don’t Lose Any More Money

With the increase in parcel shipment costs, don’t lose any more money. It’s critical to stay on top of your shipments to save your company money.

How do you feel about the increase in shipping costs? Join the conversation to discuss some cost-saving shipment tips.

The post How to Save Big Money  On Small Parcel Shipment Costs appeared first on Freight Cowboy - Shipment Management.

Parcel auditing is simply sorting through your shipment invoices and tracking what you’ve been charged for. It sounds easy enough, but it can be quite tedious and time-consuming. The parcel carriers often do make mistakes in their billing or in delivering your shipment in the transit time you had paid for. 

Have you considered auditing your shipments? Here are a few reasons why it's a good idea to do so.
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Why You Should Audit Your Shipments

Auditing your shipments could save you a lot of money in the long run, and in many cases, it is money you didn’t even know you were due. Most business owners are more concerned with shipping fees and sending orders out to customers in a timely manner, that they understandably don’t make it a priority to sift through carrier invoices, identify mistakes, file a claim with their transportation provider and then reconcile the credits on future invoices.

Consider Working With a Parcel Auditing Company

A parcel auditing company can alleviate the headache of reviewing shipping invoices. It can be overwhelming for business owners to audit their own parcel invoices. A company dedicated to tracking parcel invoices to reduce shipping costs will have the experience and technology to service your parcel auditing needs.

Pro Tip: A parcel auditing company has advanced software that identifies late deliveries, rating errors, erroneous residential charges, and other billing errors.

Parcel Service Failure Refunds

On average refunds account for 1-8% of your small package spend. A company that specifically works on parcel service failure refunds will also analyze your shipping volume, shipping charges, duplicate charges and any additional inaccurate charges on your account.

Cost Savings

Parcel audit services will save your business money in the long run. Parcel carriers have made the shipment tracking and filing processes difficult and inconvenient for business owners. Therefore, it’s better to outsource your shipment auditing needs. The best part is, Freight Cowboy does this on a contingency-based model, meaning we only earn our fee if/when we find errors and the carriers actually credit your account.

Does your business currently audit parcels? Join the conversation to chat about what shipment auditing techniques work best for you.

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Parcel Delivery Failure! What Now?

Parcel delivery failure can not only put you in a bad mood but if you were waiting on an item that is important to your work or home, it can put you behind of schedule and throw your whole week out of whack. Learn what your rights are so you can get your money refunded the next time your parcel doesn’t show up. Here are some great tips on what to do the next time you have a parcel service failure.

Consumer Rights

According to the Consumer Rights Act of 2015, any time you purchase goods online, the retailer has full responsibility until you receive the item. Therefore, if your item is received damaged or not at all, it is the retailer’s issue, not the delivery company.

Contact the Delivery Company

Before you do anything else, check the tracking number if you have one, and see where your parcel is. You can also contact the delivery company to see if they have any information about your parcel’s whereabouts.

Contact the Retailer

If the delivery company is unable to help or locate your parcel, the next step is to contact the retailer. They will be able to tell you whether the parcel has indeed been shipped, when, and where to. Check to make sure they have the correct address and ask them about what your next steps are in receiving the item you paid for.

Ask for Compensation

If your package doesn’t show up, you need to demand to get a refund or have them re-deliver your parcel at no further cost to you. Also ask the retailer about possibly getting reimbursed for any extra time you took off work, as well as any other distress the late or undelivered package has caused.

Guaranteed Shipment or Your Money Back

One of the best ways to ensure you get your package or your money back is to sign up with a service parcel failure refund service. The advanced software allows them to identify late or lost deliveries and guarantees your shipment will arrive or be refunded to you no matter what happens.

Get Your Money Back When They Fail to Deliver

When your parcel doesn’t arrive on time or at all, it can affect your work, your life, and your pocketbook. Make sure to stay in contact with the delivery company and retailer, and if you really want to take control and guarantee your parcel will be refunded if it doesn’t arrive, always use a parcel failure refund service and get the shipment refund you deserve!

To learn more about what to do in the event of a parcel service failure, Contact Us.

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The Best Shipping Practices Outlined

While freight shipping varies from customer to carrier, there are 5 simple practices that help you ensure that business relationships are mutually beneficial and efficient. These shipping practices should serve as a starting point upon which you can build your own successful process.

1) Package Properly

The importance of proper freight packaging cannot be overstated. Many claims, delays and damages arise from improper packaging. Proper packaging and loading will also help prevent costly partial shipments that could be consolidated.

2) Report Weight Accurately

Failing to weigh your shipment accurately forces carriers to re-weigh, which leads to delays, higher expense and reduces efficiency. Shippers have a responsibility to accurately report the weight of their shipment, and doing this will pay off for the shipper in the long run.

3) Adhere to Rules & Regulations

Whether you plan to ship via road, air, or water, it’s crucial to keep in mind that transportation regulations for each method are different. International borders have their own unique sets of regulations, so ensuring that your shipments are compliant with these will expedite the process. Carry all the necessary documents including invoices, import/export permits, documents pertaining to ocean and air transportation.

4) Consider Insurance

When it comes to lost or damaged freight, 3rd party insurance can save you time and money. Carriers will have their own coverage, but it may not reimburse the full value, or what the shipment might be worth to the customer.

5) Provide Transparency

Supply chain visibility promotes accountability for both customers and shipment managers. When the process is properly monitored, reported and updated, the chance of a mistake diminishes. If mistakes still manage to occur they are easily identified and avoided in the future.

Customer Satisfaction Guaranteed

It’s impossible to guarantee perfection, but if problems arise during shipping, the customer should be notified and provided with alternative options. These might vary from a simple and heartfelt apology to a parcel service failure refund.

Happy Customers are Repeat Customers

Satisfied customers that have confidence in your abilities are more likely to refer peers and return themselves. It’s not enough to say that you’re an expert in the field of freight shipping or logistics.Your expertise should speak for itself in the form of efficient practices and dependable service.

To learn more about logistics solutions that work, Contact Us.

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