Setting up freight charge rules

Setting up freight charge rules

Introduction

When the cost of shipping is initially paid for by the shipper and later collected from the receiver, freight charge rules determine how exactly shipping fees will be calculated. These rules are chosen during order entry and define the basis of this fee, any markups, and any applicable minimum and/or maximum charges. They can be applied universally or reserved for specific customers, ship-to addresses, customer types, and/or end user types.

This article describes how to set up freight rules and walks through theoretical examples for each freight basis option.

SureShip Freight Rules

The SureShip Freight Rules form is used to set up freight charge rules that can be applied during order entry.

To setup a new freight charge rule:

  1. Click Create a new object in the current collection.
  • Enter a Name for the freight rule. An optional Description may also be set for easy identification.
  • If the freight rule is only applicable during a specific date range, enter the appropriate Starting Date and Ending Date. Otherwise, leave these fields blank.
  • If a freight rule is only applicable to a specific customer, enter the appropriate customer number as the Starting Cust Num. Otherwise, enter “*” to indicate that the rule can be applied to any customer.

To apply a freight rule to a sequential range of customer numbers, enable the first Range checkbox and enter the appropriate Starting Cust Num and Ending Cust Num.

  • If a freight rule is only applicable to a specific customer ship-to address, enter the appropriate customer ship-to address number as the Cust Seq. Otherwise, enable the All Ship Tos checkbox.
  • If a freight rule is only applicable to a specific customer type, select the appropriate designation as the Starting Cust Type. Otherwise, enter “*” to indicate that the rule can be applied to any customer type.
To apply a freight rule to a sequential range of customer types, enable the second Range checkbox and select the appropriate Starting Cust Type and Ending Cust Type.
  • If a freight rule is only applicable to a specific end user type, select the appropriate designation as the Starting End User Type. Otherwise, enter “*” to indicate that the rule can be applied to any end user type.
To apply a freight rule to a sequential range of end user types, enable the third Range checkbox and select the appropriate Starting End User Type and Ending End User Type.
  • Set the appropriate Freight Basis and related information.
See section below for additional information about each freight basis and markup type.
  • Set the Default checkbox to the appropriate value. This setting tells SureShip™ which freight costing scenario assume by default when orders are created.
  1.  Enable the checkbox if the freight rule will usually be applied to orders for the selected customer ship-to address(es) (can be manually overridden at the time of order entry).
  2. Disable the checkbox if the freight rule will be less commonly be applied to orders for the selected customer ship-to address(es).


  1. Click Save.

Additional information for each "Freight Basis" option

Freight Basis: Flat Fee

Use this option for rules where the shipping charge is be a fixed dollar value.



In the example above, a flat $50 shipping fee will be charged for each shipment.

Freight Basis: Freight Cost

Use this option for rules where the shipping charge is based on the shipping carrier actual negotiated rate. Indicate whether the Markup Type, if one exists, is based on a fixed dollar value or a percentage of the incurred cost.

This freight basis allows you to set a Min Charge and Max Charge, if desired.



In the example above, the shipping fee charged for each shipment is equal to the carrier’s negotiated rate plus an additional $20, up to a maximum of $50.

If the carrier’s negotiated rate is $25, the shipping fee will be $45.

If the carrier’s negotiated rate is $35, the shipping fee (normally $55) will cap at $50.

Freight Basis: Published Rate

Use this option for rules where the shipping charge is based on the shipping carrier’s published rate. Indicate whether the Markup Type, if one exists, is based on a fixed dollar value or a percentage of the published cost.

This freight basis allows you to set a Min Charge and Max Charge, if desired.



In the example above, the shipping fee charged for each shipment is equal to the carrier’s published rate with no markup.

If the carrier’s published rate is $50, the shipping fee will be $50.

Freight Basis: Shipment Value

Use this option for rules where the shipping charge is based on the value of contents within a specific shipment. Indicate whether the Markup Type, if one exists, is based on a fixed dollar value or a percentage of the shipment value.

This freight basis allows you to set a Min Charge and Max Charge, if desired.



In the example above, the shipping fee charged for each shipment is equal to 15% of the total shipment value, starting at a minimum of $20.

If the shipment’s total value is $200, the shipping fee will be $30.

If the shipment’s total value is $100, the shipping fee (normally $15) will round up to $20.

Freight Basis: Order Value

Use this option for rules where the shipping charge is based on the value of contents within the entire order that she shipment is processed against. Indicate whether the Markup Type, if one exists, is based on a fixed dollar value or a percentage of the order value.

This freight basis allows you to set a Min Charge and Max Charge, if desired.


In the example above, the shipping fee charged for each shipment is equal to 5% of the total order value.

If the order’s total value is $500, the shipping fee will be $25 for each shipment processed against that order.



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