Five Simple Ways to Save Money When Shipping LTL (Less-Than-Truckload) Freight

When you get a rate for an LTL shipment, the cost is influenced by so many different factors that it’s actually pretty easy to make some simple changes and see your LTL shipping costs go down. While these tips may not be possible for everyone to implement, you’ll likely find at least one or two of them are relevant to your situation!

Let’s get right down to it.

Maximize the density of your shipment

A truck can only haul so much weight. LTL carriers make a profit by fitting as many different LTL shipments into one single trailer as possible. So which do you think they prefer… a 5,000lb shipment that takes up 25% of the space in the trailer, or a 5,000lb shipment that only takes up 10% of the space? The more space your shipment takes up in the trailer, the more you’ll be charged to ship it.

While the weight of your shipment is out of your control, the density is not! Do everything you can to compact your shipment and increase the density as much as possible. If your pallets are not stackable, find a way to make it so. Pack your product more densely (less empty space between cases or product on the pallet, if possible). Stack an extra row on top of each pallet to possibly eliminate an extra pallet. Brainstorm about all the ways to make your shipment take up less space, and you will definitely see a financial reward.

Consolidate your shipments

Shipping a full truckload of freight is often far less expensive than shipping multiple LTL shipments. Have you ever considered consolidating your LTL shipments into a multi-stop truckload shipment? Of course, it depends where your shipments are delivering – for example, a multi-stop truckload picking up in Maine and delivering in Florida, Minnesota, and California might not make financial sense compared to shipping LTL. But if your delivery points are close to each other, or if they form a line across the country (at least vaguely), getting a quote on a consolidated truckload shipment would be very wise.

Negotiate a FAK

Those of you who have not heard the term “FAK” are probably raising your eyebrows. “FAK” stands for “freight all kinds”. This literally refers to when a customer ships all kinds of freight. Let’s say you ship some products at class 50, some at class 55, some at 75, and some at 150. (If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go read this blog to learn about freight class.) Since your freight class impacts the cost of your LTL shipment, and getting a rate for different classes all the time can quickly become time-consuming and complicated, you actually have a different option here. We can negotiate a FAK on your behalf, which basically means you can ship all your LTL freight at the same class. Not only does this simplify things for you, it also typically results in cost savings!

Provide accurate information

Most shippers are painfully aware that the rate for shipping their LTL freight is highly dependent on the size and weight. For this reason, some people are tempted to slightly “underestimate” the dimensions or weight of their shipment in the hopes it will result in a slightly lower shipping cost and the LTL carrier will be none the wiser.

Whatever you do, DO NOT DO THIS! Rather than saving money, you’re putting yourself at risk of being fined. If the carrier happens to double check the dimensions or weight of your shipment, and it doesn’t match what’s on the BOL… let’s just say you’ll be in a world of trouble. Your shipment cost will be raised accordingly, but you’ll also be charged with an inspection fee, and it’s possible the carrier will red-flag your freight to be inspected every single time you ever ship with them in the future.

By ensuring the weight, size, and all other information listed on the bill of lading is accurate, you will not be risking these extra fees.

If you don’t ship at a high volume, work with a 3PL

If you ship a large amount of LTL freight, you can negotiate lower pricing with LTL carriers (or have a 3PL negotiate on your behalf). But what if you don’t ship LTL that often? Does that mean you’re stuck paying the highest rates every time you call up your LTL carrier of choice? If you work directly with LTL carriers, then yes, maybe. But a great alternative is to ship your LTL freight through a 3PL (like Trinity Logistics). Because of the high volume of freight that 3PLs arrange (all of their customers combined!) they will have the lower contracted rates available that you can take advantage of without having high volume of your own. This will result in a significant cost savings, especially over time.