Understanding your options for pallets and other types of handling units when using one of Eniture's products that provide quotes for LTL freight.
Eniture Technology publishes many products for a variety of e-commerce platforms that will provide LTL freight quotes on the Cart page and during the checkout process. A common question from prospective users is how to account for the (or other type of handling unit) of their freight. For quoting purposes, for more than 95% of LTL shippers, it is an insignificant question.
The vast majority of LTL freight shippers have a tariff (pricing agreement) with their LTL freight provider that uses the freight classification system that has been governed by the National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA) since 1956. This method uses the freight classes of the contents of the shipment to identify rates that will apply to it. For example, 500 pounds of a shipment with a freight class of 85 will be rated the same whether it is on 1, 2, or 5 pallets. The caveat to this example is the incremental weight the pallet adds to the shipment. The addition of a 40-pound pallet will likely add less than $10 to the total cost of a shipment.
A very small number of LTL shippers -- less than 5% -- will have tariffs (pricing agreements) with their LTL freight provider that stipulate that shipments will be rated dimensionally. For these shippers, the number of pallets and their sizes is extremely important in determining the shipping charges.
Regardless of the tariff (pricing agreement) you have with your LTL freight provider, Eniture Technology has you covered.
Basic Handling Unit Settings
Image from one of Eniture's apps for Shopify:
All of Eniture's LTL freight quoting products have settings for handling unit weight, and the maximum weight per handling unit. These are rudimentary settings that are used to increase the shipment weight of the Cart to account for the incremental cost that the handling unit will contribute to the quoted shipping cost for the order. For nearly all LTL shippers, using these settings is simple and more than adequate for identifying accurate LTL shipping rates.
Pallet Packing Feature
Also available from Eniture Technology is the Pallet Packing feature. It is required for merchants who have a tariff (pricing agreement) with their LTL provider that stipulates that the charges of their shipments will be determined dimensionally. It is not recommended for merchants who have a traditional tariff (pricing agreement) with their provider. Using the Pallet Packing feature adds a level of complexity that for merchants on a traditional tariff (pricing agreement) will usually not improve the accuracy or the shipping quotes.
If you are subject to a tariff (pricing agreement) that rates your shipments dimensionally, you can enable the Pallet Packing feature as follows:
- BigCommerce: Enable it within the Real Time Shipping Quotes app.
- Shopify: Enable it within the LTL Freight Quote app, or the Real Time Shipping Quotes app depending on what is installed on the store.
- WooCommerce: Install the Pallet Packing add-on plugin.
Related Documents
Identifying Pallets For LTL Freight Quotes
What Is Dimensionally Rated LTL Freight