A freight bill audit can save you money. Worldwide Express can help!

Have you ever looked at a freight bill and said, "Hey, wait a minute. Is that right?" You almost certainly have. We all take a second glance at our bills, whether for freight shipping or grocery shopping. But how often do you take a deeper look at the bill and analyze your spending, question costs and take action that will save you money?

In the shipping industry, that's called a freight bill audit or invoice review. And it's a complimentary service that Worldwide Express experts provide to potential customers during an initial visit so we can learn how to save you money. As an industry-leading third-party logistics (3PL) provider, it's just one part of what we do to help you cut costs and save you time.

What is freight bill auditing and why do you need it?

A freight bill (also known as a freight invoice) summarizes a shipping transaction and is completed after a load is shipped by the carrier or 3PL services provider. It includes the description of what was transported, along with costs and accessorial charges. The invoice also lists modes used, including less-than-truckload (LTL) and full truckload (FTL) freight shipping, among other essential information.

A freight bill review — or freight bill audit — includes a deep analysis of your freight charges to determine whether they're accurate and if you're paying too much for LTL and FTL freight shipping services. A freight invoice audit can also point to inefficiencies in your processes and allow you to adjust your solutions and supply chain management.

What does Worldwide Express look for in freight bill auditing?

During your first meeting with our experts, Worldwide Express will review your invoices and identify areas for improvements and cost savings. It's important to have those freight invoices available, otherwise a deep and accurate analysis isn't possible.

Below, we list six of the areas that we evaluate on your invoice:

• Competitive pricing — Get a side-by-side comparison of how much you are paying for services with you current shipping partner/carriers and how much you would save by working with Worldwide Express. By leveraging our extensive carrier network, technology solutions and industry expertise, we can get you top rates and identify cost savings on all your shipping needs.
• Accessorial fees — Learn more about "unforeseen" or "unexpected" accessorial fees and how we can develop strategies to limit them. Common examples of these fees include inside delivery, lift gate service and redelivery. These charges can eat away at your bottom line, but shippers can often avoid them.
• Service types — Discover how we can help you optimize your shipping strategy by selecting the appropriate freight service type. Whether you need overnight shipping or standard delivery within the week, we'll help you find the right FTL and LTL shipping company for the job. We can also make specialty shipping recommendations like dry van, flatbed or reefer shipping in cases where it makes sense and saves you money. And since we're part of the largest non-retail authorized reseller of UPS ^® in the nation, we will also tell you when small package shipping makes more sense than freight from a financial standpoint.
• Mode optimization — Did you know that FTL shipping provides options that simple are not available through LTL (and vice versa)? Our experts can determine if you are selecting the right modes for the right shipments and make recommendations based upon your current shipping output and invoice findings.
• Reclassification — Freight class is an often-misunderstood concept which, in the end, can cost you additional money. By determining why reclassification is occurring and how you can avoid it, Worldwide Express can make recommendations to streamline your processes to ensure you are properly classifying your freight and protecting yourself against unexpected charges.
• Cost allocation — Handwritten notes on invoices often suggest a manual method of cost allocating expenses throughout your company. If these are identified, Worldwide Express will share the benefits of our transportation management system (TMS). This system provides mandatory cost-allocation dropdowns for greater clarity on your invoices — saving you money and avoiding confusion.

Why We Are Uniquely Equipped To Provide a Freight Invoice Audit

Hypothetically, anyone with basic math skills can look at invoices and make recommendations. But will those recommendations be effective? Will they be based upon proven freight shipping solutions? And do those would-be auditors have access to a wide selection of carriers, shipping services and rate programs, which are the bedrock of all comprehensive, targeted and solutions-oriented shipping strategies?

Worldwide Express has provided shipping expertise to small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) for more than 30 years. Here are just a few of the services we provide that help companies succeed:

• Our network of nearly 85,000 FTL and 75-plus LTL freight carriers extends throughout the U.S. Plus, we can help you ship internationally to many countries.
• With SpeedShip^®, our transportation management system (TMS), you have the options you need to efficiently move your freight behind the power of innovative technology.
• Our experts are committed to building a relationship, sharing insights and making recommendations to improve your shipping strategy for short-term and long-term success.
• Shippers are provided cost savings through the buying power of 121,000 customers, along with negotiated rates and special incentives.
• We provide on-going support and cost-saving recommendations and assign a dedicated account team to each customer.

Ready to work with an industry-leading 3PL services provider that can save you money?

Do you want to learn more about our best-in-class 3PL services, including our upfront freight bill audit? Reach out to our shipping experts today to learn how we can save you money on shipping freight!