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Truck Freight


What is “truck freight”?

LTL truck shipment (Less than Truck Load) Less than Truck Load, or LTL truck shipment, is the middle step between parcel shipment (FedEx, UPS, USPS) and full truckload shipments. Bangor Cork commonly uses this mode of shipment for large cartons over 100 pounds, any flat boards 4’ x 4’ or larger, and anything that ships on a pallet. LTL truck freight is intended as an economical way for businesses to move substantial amounts of product between their vendors, themselves, and their customers.

Do I qualify for “commercial delivery”?

Truck services define a “commercial address” as a structure that is crewed (staffed) and open to the public during regular business hours, about 8 or 9 AM to 4 or 5 PM. Most workplaces and businesses qualify as long as access to the delivery site is not heavily regulated. Commercial delivery is usually the most economical type of delivery, as it’s assumed that the delivery driver will be able to pull up or walk in, unload his freight, and get a person to sign for its receipt without having to make an appointment or show up in a specialized vehicle. All truck deliveries require a signature at delivery.

Why is delivery to a residence/school/church more expensive?

Addresses that are not “commercial”, as determined by freight companies, are subject to accessorial fees, which increase the cost of the shipment. The two most common accessorial fees we see are “residential delivery”, which applies to any truck shipment going to a home or apartment building, and “limited access delivery”, which is a broad category that includes churches, schools, farms, construction sites, and military bases, among others. The justification is that, unlike a commercial address, these deliveries may require extra consideration or planning. A shorter truck might be required, a guard shack might need a check-in, a delivery appointment might be required, et cetera. These fees apply to non-commercial deliveries even if no special consideration is actually required. A business operating out of a residence is still subject to the residential price.

I need a lot of material, but I have no loading dock!

Many trucking companies include vehicles in their fleet with hydraulic lift gates for getting palleted shipments down to ground level, and almost all trucks carry a pallet jack alongside the cargo. If you think you’ll need this kind of service give us a call or contact us and we’ll be happy to calculate a freight cost which includes it for you. Not everything we ship will require such assistance, though, and we’ll be happy to help you assess what your needs will be based on what product you’re interested in and where you’re trying to have it delivered.

Will I be able to track my shipment?

You sure will. All shipments are assigned a tracking number (sometimes called PRO number) by the freight company, and almost all companies have mechanisms on their websites which will allow you to track your shipment as it travels. We try to pass all customers a carrier name and tracking number when their freight is picked up from us.

My freight showed up damaged! What do I do?

Fear not! We replace all product damaged in transit and reship it as quickly as we can. But there are a couple of things you can do to help streamline the claims process and (hopefully) still walk away from the first delivery with some usable goods:

  • If some of the items in your shipment are damaged, but not all of them, notate the damage on the driver’s delivery receipt when signing for the shipment. Include the number of items damaged and, if possible, a description of what’s happened to them.
  • If your shipment included only a single item, or if nothing in the shipment will be usable to you, refuse the delivery entirely. If they have you sign that you refused the shipment, feel free to notate that you’re refusing it due to damage.
  • Feel free to open any cartons and inspect the goods inside before signing anything at all. We’ve seen cartons delivered in tatters with perfectly intact boards inside. The packaging is built tough, and withstanding abuse is what it was designed for.
  • Whether you refuse the shipment or sign for it as damaged and accept it, take pictures of the damage! These are very helpful in expediting freight claims, and can be emailed to sales@bangorcork.com or to any of our individual email addresses.
  • If you’re not sure what to do, call us! We’re reachable at 610-759-0320 every weekday from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern time, and will be glad to help however we can.
I have more questions about freight!

Feel free to contact us. All of us here in the office are well versed in truck and parcel shipment and will be happy to answer any questions you might have.