News & Articles

That shipping rate hike may be higher than it appears

Shipping rate hikes announced annually by United Parcel Service of America Inc. and FedEx Corp. average about 4.9%, according to the companies. But a recent review of those delivery services’ many rate categories by shipping consultants LJM Freight Auditing and Consulting finds that many shippers, including online retailers, face rate hikes this year of between 6.5% and 8.8%.

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LJM Consultants, UPS & FedEx Invoice Auditors and Contract Negotiators, extends its popular Client Referral Program:

Melville, NY - LJM Consultants, the premier UPS and FedEx Invoice auditing and contract negotiating firm in the US has announced it will extend its popular Client Referral Program for 2012. The program, established a few years back, has proven to be a tremendous success for both LJM Consultants clients who refer other high volume shippers to LJM.

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UPS and FedEx 2012 Rate Increase - Understanding the severe financial consequences of not understanding the changes!!!

By Ken Wood, President - LJM Freight Auditing & Consulting

It's that time of the year again - when UPS and FedEx simultaneously increased their rates. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all shippers! Wouldn't you know, once again both companies' increases are almost identical. I cannot imagine that this increase comes as a surprise to anyone who ships with UPS or FedEx or who works in the transportation industry, as this has become an annual tradition.

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Are you prepared for another UPS and FedEx rate increase?

By Ken Wood, President, LJM Consultants

Effective January 2, 2012 UPS and FedEx will again increase their rates and fees. Do you know what this increase is going to cost your company? Likely between 6% and 12%!!! As the published rates from the two major carriers go up, at a rate of more than three times inflation, and the accessorial charges, such as Dimensional Weight, Address Corrections, Residential Deliveries, Delivery Area Surcharges etc. continue to increase, companies need to look for ways to reduce these out of control costs.

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Current Fuel Surcharge Rate for Package Services

Ground
Through January 1, 2012: 8.50%
Effective January 2, 2012: 8.00%

Air and International
Through January 1, 2012: 14.00%
Effective January 2, 2012: 12.50%

Solving The "Free Shipping" Puzzle

Online shoppers prefer to pay nothing for shipping, or as little as possible. That puts pressure on retailers to minimize fulfillment and delivery costs, while still providing good service. It's a complex task, but there's help available.

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December 31, 2011 - Dealing with carriers (article source: Internet Retailer)

Making shipping offers attractive to customers as well as profitable overall for the retailer takes more than just the ability to crunch cost and revenue figures. Reichman says he's able to negotiate advantageous rates from his primary carrier for orders of five pounds or more, UPS, because of his volume of business. But he also takes other steps to ensure the best rates from UPS as well as from other carriers. For example, Reichman is retaining a shipping auditing firm, LJM Consultants that reviews its shipping contracts and invoices to scour for any mistakes in billing. LJM gets a percentage of any overbilling it uncovers, but doesn't charge any other fees.

"My Internet business has hundreds of pages of billing, and I can't audit it myself," Reichman says. Maintaining accurate records provides for a better negotiating environment when renewing contracts, he adds.