Freight rate sheet checklist: 15 checks before you quote
Most wrong or slow quotes trace back to the rate sheet: an expired rate, a missing container size, a local charge nobody listed. Run your sheet against these 15 checks once a month and quoting gets faster and safer.
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Validity
1. Every rate has a 'valid to' dateNo date means nobody knows whether it's current, so every quote starts with a check.
2. Expired rates are removed or markedOne expired line quoted in a busy week costs more than the time it takes to clear them out.
3. Future rates carry a 'valid from' dateA GRI that starts on the 15th should be quoted from the 15th, not the day the notice arrived.
Coverage
4. Every container size you sell is priced20GP, 40GP and 40HC on every FCL lane, so a 40HC request isn't priced off a 40GP rate.
5. LCL has a rate per W/M and a minimumWithout the minimum, small shipments get quoted below cost.
6. Air has weight breaks and a minimumMin, -45, +45, +100, +300, +500 and +1000 kg, plus the volumetric divisor you use.
7. Your top 20 lanes are coveredPull last quarter's quote requests and check the lanes customers actually ask for.
Charges
8. Origin and destination charges are listed per container or per shipmentTHC, documentation, ISPS, and the rest: one line each, not buried in the freight.
9. Clearance, biosecurity and permits have their own linesThese are where quotes most often go out incomplete.
10. Delivery is priced by zone or postcodeA flat 'metro delivery' figure undercharges the far suburbs and overcharges the near ones.
11. Surcharges are named, not mergedBAF, PSS, peak and fuel surcharges change separately from base freight.
Quoting rules
12. Each rate's currency is statedUSD freight and local-currency charges on the same quote, with no silent conversions.
13. Your markup or margin is written downPer mode or per customer, so two people quoting the same request get the same price.
14. Exclusions are standardDuty, taxes, storage, detention and demurrage: the same wording on every quote.
15. One person owns the sheetCarrier notices go to one place and get merged the same day.
Have your sheet checked for you
Email your rate sheet, in any layout, to try@getlaneworks.com. A health check comes back in a few minutes: expired and expiring rates, missing container sizes, missing charges and rows that can't be read. Free, no sign-up.
Send your rate sheet