Your shipping bill consists of vital information about your package, from details about the recipient to how much you can expect to pay for a shipment. To avoid any bad surprises or accidentally overpay for shipping, you want to make sure to read your invoices carefully.
In this post, we’ll take a look at three leading carriers (FedEx, UPS, and DHL) and the structure that each of their shipping bills follows.
Reading Your FedEx Bill
Here is the format that each shipping bill from FedEx follows:
1. Contact / Bank Information
The first thing you’ll see on your shipping invoice is your contact and bank information. Here are the different things that it will consist of:
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- Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT): Your EFT will include your account name, bank, IBAN, and BIC.
- Credit cards: FedEx makes it possible to choose which major credit card you want to use to pay your shipping bill.
- Direct debit.
2. Invoice Type
There are two types of invoice types when it comes to FedEx shipping bills. These include:
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- Freight invoice: This consists of the transportation charges incurred per Air Waybill.
- Duty tax invoice: It details all the clearance charges imposed in the destination region or country.
3. Shipping Information
This part of the invoice covers all of your package’s shipping information, such as:
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- Shipping number information
- Ship date
- Reference
- Taxable / non-taxable / Total charges
4. Shipper Details
Next, your invoice will include all of the information about the shipper. These details include:
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- Company name
- Postal code
- City
- Etc.
5. Charges
Here you’ll see a breakdown of charges incurred at Air Waybill level.
6. Proof of Delivery
This part of the shipping invoice confirms that your recipient received the order. The bill will show you the signature, date, and time of your shipment to show proof.
7. Overall Summary of All Charges & Total Amount Due
As you reach the end of the shipping bill, you’ll see a summary of all charges, such as taxes, discounts, and more factors that could affect the price.
8. Payment Remittance Address
Finally, the invoice ends with the remittance address to the UPS office.
Reading Your UPS Bill
UPS is another popular option to get your shipping and packaging handled. Here’s how shipping bills from UPS are formatted:
1. Account Status Summary
On each UPS invoice, you get a summary of your account which includes your previous invoices with the provider.
2. Payment Terms
The bill will have a section that outlines UPS’s payment terms and what they entail.
3. Outbound Shipping Charges
In this section of the bill, you’ll get an overview of any outbound shipments during the invoicing period and get a tracking number for your package. It will also include information on your shipping zone and product weight.
4. Adjustments and Other Charges
There may be other additional costs that impact the total cost of your bill. Some of these can include late payment charges, same day pickup, and other factors.
Your package’s dimensions can also add extra charges. UPS determines how much you can expect to pay by taking into account the length, width, and height of your package.
5. Taxes
The invoice will cover which taxes you’ll have to pay for each item you ship.
6. Return Portion
If you’re paying by cheque, this section includes the amount due and return form to fill out.
Reading your DHL Bill
DHL is one of the global leaders in the logistics industry. Here’s how to read the format of each of their shipping bills:
1. Type of Invoice
DHL has different forms to shipping bills, such as:
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- Inbound invoice
- Outbound invoice
- Credit adjustment
- Debit adjustment
Your shipping bill starts by identifying which one corresponds to your package.
2. Customer’s Billing Information
Next, your DHL bill will cover all of your customer’s billing information, which includes:
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- Invoice number
- Account number
- Invoice date
- Payment due date
3. Shipment and Package Information
This part of the bill covers the shipment origin details of the package and the destination receiver. It includes the total number of pieces associated with each waybill and the total weight of the shipment.
4. Service Description and Extra Charges
It’s possible that you chose a particular form of service and have some extra charges that impact the price of your shipping bill. They will all get covered in this section.
5. Total Due
By taking everything above into account, the invoice shows you how much you can expect to pay in total.
6. Billing and Payment Information
The invoice ends with all the bill and payment information (including the customer’s billing address), so you can proceed to pay the invoice in full.
Conclusion
Make sure you take the time to read your shipping bill carefully. While shipping invoices may defer from carrier to carrier, they all provide you with information on the recipient and take into account extra charges that could impact the cost.
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