How Carrier Contract Terms Quietly Cost You Thousands

When was the last time you really looked at your carrier contract?
If you're like most businesses, you negotiated it once, signed it, and moved on — thinking you had "locked in" good rates for the long haul. But hidden inside that agreement are silent killers: escalators, surcharge adjustments, new service level definitions, and policy changes that carriers quietly bake in over time.

Without active monitoring and renegotiation, even a well-negotiated deal can erode into a major source of hidden cost. You could be losing thousands — sometimes tens of thousands — of dollars per year without ever receiving a formal notice from your carrier.

Here’s how it happens:

• Annual General Rate Increases (GRIs): Carriers reserve the right to increase your base rates even if you’re under contract — and often do.
• Surcharge Creep: Fuel surcharges, residential delivery fees, delivery area surcharges — all can increase outside of your negotiated rates unless specifically locked down.
• New Accessorial Charges: Carriers create new fees every year. If your contract doesn’t shield you, you’re exposed to extra costs with no negotiation.
• Dimensional Weight Changes: Adjustments to how shipments are measured can quietly drive up your billed weight — and your total spend.
• Service Level Shifts: Definitions for service guarantees like "Ground" or "Express" can change, impacting your delivery expectations and costs.

Over time, these small changes compound.
A few cents here, a percentage point there — across hundreds or thousands of shipments — can quietly add up to serious money bleeding from your bottom line.

Why “Set It and Forget It” Is Dangerous:
Many companies trust that a signed contract means stability. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what carriers rely on. They build flexibility into the fine print, knowing that most businesses won't proactively re-check the terms after signing.
By the time finance notices the spend creeping up, it’s already too late — and the damage is done.

How to Protect Your Shipping Spend:

• Schedule regular contract reviews. Treat it like an insurance policy: if you aren’t reviewing it, you’re exposed.
• Track surcharge trends separately from your base rates.
• Push for caps and protections in your next negotiation.
• Audit your invoices regularly to spot creeping charges and billing errors.
• Partner with a parcel audit expert who can monitor and negotiate on your behalf — and catch issues early before they snowball.

The carriers count on you not paying attention.
We help you turn the tables — and keep your shipping costs under control, year after year.

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