LTL Freight News

A freight claim is not intended to be a profit center for a claimant, but rather to make the shipper “whole”, as if the carrier had performed their obligation according to the terms of the BOL contract and delivered the shipment as expected, with full market value intact. There are cases where the loss of profit as a result of the damage can be justified within a claim filing; however, in most cases, including profit in the claim is unacceptable. It is presumed that in the event of damage, the shipper would send a replacement for the damaged item out to the consignee and that the shipper’s profit would be secured with the replacement shipment. With the intended profit secured by the replacement and profit also included in the claim, a double profit would occur, causing the carrier to be unreasonably burdened. A freight (damage) claim is a demand from a carrier by a shipper or claimant for monetary reimbursement of a lost or damaged shipment, and the outcome of a claim settlement should...

Broker model 3PLs buy freight from the carriers and put a markup or margin on it and resell it to the shipper at a higher rate. This is how they make their money, and their margins can be adjusted on virtually every shipment as they fit. With the 3PL broker model shippers are normally unable to go directly to carriers for copies of the actual freight bills, and in some cases they are unable to obtain rates directly from the carriers. Since the 3PL broker is actually the one “buying” the freight from the carrier, they invoice the freight to a shipper on their own freight bill instead of one from the carrier. Otherwise, if shippers had direct access to the carrier freight bills then the shippers would be able to see how much the freight actually cost versus what the 3PL was "re-selling" it for.   As a part of their proposed value to shippers, many broker model 3PLs will tout that they file claims for their customers. They portray filing claims as their willingness to go th...

It is important to keep in mind that each claim is different and involves different circumstances, so not all of the below information will apply for every claim. WHO FILES THE CLAIM? Typically, the payer of the freight bill can only be reimbursed for the freight charges, so they are usually the ones to file a claim. Anyone can file a claim, however, but this is usually the simplest way to do it. HOW LONG DO YOU HAVE TO FILE A CLAIM? The answer to this depends on the type of claim being filed. There are generally two types of damage claims: Noted Damage and Concealed Damage. The difference between the two is that noted/visible damage claims were noted at the time of delivery, usually on the delivery receipt, and concealed damages were not. Concealed damages must be reported to the carrier within 15 days of delivery. Anything reported past the 15 day window will not be considered for a settlement and will be denied for filing too late. A claim for noted/visible damage m...

It is important to keep in mind that each claim is different and involves different circumstances, so not all of the below information will apply for every claim. Typically, the payer of the freight can only be reimbursed for the freight charges, so they are usually the ones to file a claim. Anyone can file a claim, however, but this is usually the simplest way to do it. If the item was noted as damaged and refused, someone will first need to take possession of the freight. The carrier will typically only store the refused items for 15 days at the terminal until they begin to charge storage fees. If warranted, it is typically during this time that the carrier will have an inspection done by an independent third party. This third party, or inspector, will mainly be looking for the extent of the damage, what type of damage, and as to why/how it occurred (i.e. was packaging sufficient). After it is completed, someone qualified to make an assessment will need to do so in order to estim...