What every business needs to know about additional UPS charges

If you are a business shipping with UPS, you have probably encountered some of the more common additional charges assessed for the shipment of your packages. While many of these charges are unavoidable, such as fuel recovery fees and additional handling, other fees can be avoided through proper planning and knowledge. Here are the most common items that every business needs to know about about additional UPS charges.

What are the most common additional charges that can be avoided?

This is the most frequently asked question by businesses. While there are certain fees that you can not escape, there are a large number of fees that can be avoided all together.

• Address Correction – Assessed when there is a change in the delivery address provided by the shipper. This is hefty fee usually starting at around $18 per package. Attention to detail and validating the correct before shipment can help to eliminate this fee.
• Additional Handling or Large Package – Assessed when a package exceeds an actual or DIM weight threshold. It is always a good practice to avoid this fee at all cost where possible. Additional fees can start at around $20 and quickly increase to over $100 depending upon the package size. If possible, breaking down your shipment into smaller packages can avoid this fee and save a considerable amount of money on the shipment.
• Special Handling of Undeliverable Packages – Assessed when a package is undeliverable and is returned to the sender. This is rare but it does come up occasionally. If you are unsure of the deliverability of package, it is always good to verify before it is shipped. The UPS address validator tool can assist with this.

What additional fee should I expect to pay?

As mentioned previously, there are a number of fees that are unavoidable when shipping your packages. However, by partnering with a preferred partner like InXpress, many of these fees are deeply discounted or entirely removed from the shipment cost. Some of these additional fees include:

• Residential Delivery – Carriers incur higher operational costs for delivering to residential areas. These costs are directly passed on in the form of residential delivery fee, and can range from $4-$10. Under our  preferred pricing programs, InXpress can offer their customers either reduced or waived residential delivery fees.
• Peak Season Surcharge – UPS and other carriers have added a peak surcharge between late November and January since the pandemic began in early 2020. This fee is usually assessed on heavy or oversized packages. As with the residential surcharge, InXpress customer shave access to pricing programs that can reduce or eliminate these charges.
• Daily or Weekly Pickup Fee – UPS Customers requesting a regular or on-demand pickup service will be assessed a pickup fee. This fee can also be avoided under certain InXpress programs.

How do I  ensure my shipping strategy is ready for peak season?

This is the easiest answer of all, contact InXpress today to find out how we can help you save time, money, and stress on all your shipments! We have over 30 years of experience in solving shipping challenges for over 30,000 customers worldwide. We can provide you with a complimentary consultation to make sure your shipping operations are ready to go!