Freight audits may seem like a cumbersome task to many shippers, or something that isn’t necessary in the grand scheme of things, but there are many cost saving benefits to ensuring proper billing for all of your logistics needs. In the world of big data, a decimal point can make all the difference. Because freight charges represent up to 10 percent of a company’s total expenses, identifying and correcting freight bill errors through auditing is crucial, and shippers want to glean the same insights for their global transportation moves as they capture from domestic carrier data.
Up to 30 percent of all freight invoices are incorrect, according to market research. But performing freight audit and payment internally is challenging, requiring specialized expertise, and extensive time and effort—resources many companies lack. Freight bill payment and auditing services can help companies more easily track where their dollars are going, and ensure they are paying the correct carrier fees.
So how can outsourcing freight auditing save you money in both the short and long term? It’s simple. When you devote your own resources and labor to audit your freight bills, you’re taking away precious resources that could be spent on your core business. And whether you recover overpaid freight charges or not, you still have to pay your employees to audit a paid freight bill one by one by one.
But because the best third party Freight Bill Audit and Payment companies work on a contingency basis, there are no costs unless overpaid charges are found. That means there’s no cost to you whatsoever unless over payments are identified. Plus, because professional freight auditors have extensive experience identifying errors and dealing with carriers, they can manage this process much more efficiently.
That means you can stop wasting the time of your Accounts Payable department on the grueling, time-sensitive process of freight auditing, while also bringing in extra money at the same time. If no over payments are found, there’s no cost to you.
Unfortunately, in the shipping world, over payments occur far too often. A carrier like FedEx delivers an average of 9 million packages in 220 countries every day, and mistakes are inevitable. There are also a host of other benefits as well, like receiving reams of actionable data that can be used as leverage in negotiating better rates in the future.
Audit a Paid Freight Bill with a Third Party: How Does It Work? The process is straightforward:
Your company sends freight invoices from the past 180 days in bulk to your freight auditor.
Invoices and bills are compared with pricing agreements to identify errors.
A claim is filed on your behalf.
When payment is made, your company receives a check.