Know what’s changing your shipping costs.
And what to do about it.

ParcelAdvisor puts carrier changes in the context of your agreement, shipping profile, and business priorities. Understand what they mean for your costs and what to do next, before or after they take effect.

Carrier update received.

Activity 4 steps

Your agreement caps covered transportation rates at 3.5%.

That protection applies to specified transportation rates. It does not cap your total shipping bill.

Where the increase lands	Annual impact
Covered transportation3.5% capped rates + associated fuel	+$100,800
Surcharge changesOutside the cap · includes associated fuel	+$54,000
Fuel-table revisionsOutside the cap · same market fuel price	+$72,000
Separate program pricingOutside the cap’s scope	+$50,400
Recurring increase	+$277,200

Your rates are capped.
Your discounts could still disappear.

Your Advisor checks how the proposed terms interact with your shipping patterns. Here, a change to the way discounts are earned collides with the quietest weeks of the year.

See why the timing matters and what to take back to your carrier.

Activity 3 steps

Your current earned discount returns in week four in this scenario.

The week before the rate cap takes effect, your 52-week average supports a 20% earned discount. This proposal resets that average on the cap’s effective date. The first calculation then uses only the next week, a low-volume Christmas week.

Week before the rate cap takes effect20% earned discount

$800,000 per week, averaged over 52 weeks. That is above the $700,000 needed for your current earned tier.

Rate cap takes effect. The 52-week average resets.First week after the reset: Christmas spend ÷ 1 week. None of the previous 52 weeks counts. New Year’s then joins the average as week two.

BeforeRate cap begins · history resets

Qualifies for today’s 20% discount

First earned-discount tier

Week before
the change20% earned discount
52-week average
$800,000
Christmas week0% earned discount
1 week only
$240,000
New Year’s week0% earned discount
2-week average
$300,000
Week 315% earned discount
3-week average
$580,000
Week 420% earned discount
4-week average
$750,000

The first bar is the existing 52-week average. After the reset line, each bar averages only the weeks since the rate cap took effect. Discounts shown are the earned component for the affected services; other incentives may still apply.

$70,560 in temporary added cost. The same eligible shipment costs more when its earned discount falls, even with a cap on rate increases.

First-year scenario$277,200 recurring + $70,560 temporary+$347,760

Ask the carrier to preserve your existing shipping history. If the average must start over, negotiate timing or transition protection for the holiday weeks.

Timing, affected shipments, and the agreement’s measurement rules determine actual exposure.

Inspect the contract assumptions and calculation

What the cap covers

The 3.5% cap applies to named transportation rates, providing $69,120 in annual protection. Fuel-table revisions, accessorials, and a separate program have their own terms.

What the restart changes

In this example, the proposed agreement raises incentives to deliver the cap and separately requires the qualifying average to restart during a low-volume holiday week. The average has to rebuild before normal earned discounts return.

First tier: $400k average. Normal tier: $700k average.

Week 1 · No earned tier+$23,040

Week’s qualifying spend$240,000

Average since restart$240,000

Week 2 · No earned tier+$40,320

Week’s qualifying spend$360,000

Average since restart$300,000

Week 3 · Lower tier+$7,200

Week’s qualifying spend$1,140,000

Average since restart$580,000

Week 4 · Normal tierTier restored

Week’s qualifying spend$1,260,000

Average since restart$750,000

Weekly qualifying spendAverage since restartTier thresholds

Christmas weekNo earned tier+$23,040

New Year’s weekNo earned tier+$40,320

Volume returnsLower tier+$7,200

Tier restoredNormal tierNo additional tier cost

This example includes the current week in the restarted average. The applicable agreement and billed treatment must be reconciled.

Keep the two effects separate

Recurring carrier changes: +$277,200
One-time tier transition: +$70,560
First-year scenario: +$347,760

A full year on the fixed profile plus the transition; excludes service mix and assumes no credits. Baseline spend: $5.4M. Covered transportation: $2.4M. Uncapped increase: 5.9% (applied uniformly to covered transportation for this planning scenario); cap: 3.5%; associated fuel: 20%.

Tier exposure: 2,400 and 4,200 packages × $9.60, then 3,000 × $2.40. At $40 of eligible transportation and 20% associated fuel, these represent 20 and 5 percentage points of lost earned discount. Qualifying spend and affected package counts are separate measures. Minimum-charge relief is not sized here.

Take this back to the carrier

Preserve the existing qualifying average, or confirm a transition that maintains the tier.
Request separate protection for costs outside the cap.
Confirm incentives, minimum-charge treatment, and the first billed tier before assuming relief or a credit.

Go back to your carrier.
With the evidence.

Turn the analysis into a specific negotiating position. Know which terms to challenge and what a counteroffer would change.

Pressure-test your counteroffer Explore Proposal Analysis

From your GRI impact review

Three actions before the change.

Preserve the qualifying average.
Avoid restarting into the holiday-volume trough.
Extend protection beyond base rates.
Address surcharges, fuel tables, and separate programs.
Calculate the counteroffer.
Compare revised terms on the same eligible shipments.

Where does the increase
land in your business?

Keep investigating the same forecast. Connect the cost increase to specific products, using your shipment and product references.

Activity 2 steps

Two product groups account for most of the increase.

Service kits and replacement parts account for 61% of the recurring increase in this scenario.

Product	Annual increase
Service kitsKIT-A12	+$96,000
Replacement partsPART-B24	+$72,000
Panel assembliesPANEL-C08	+$48,000
Other productsOther connected references	+$61,200
Total	+$277,200

Same pricing scenario and shipment profile; excludes the one-time tier restart. Products are identified through connected shipment references.

Follow the cost
into the box.

Keep the same agreement and pricing scenario in context. See how the new pricing affects DIM-rated shipments, product by product.

Activity 2 steps

Same boxes. Higher costs on DIM-rated shipments.

$91,200 of the $277,200 increase falls on shipments rated by dimensional weight. The boxes and DIM rule have not changed.

Product	Increase on DIM-rated shipments
Service kits	+$48,000
Replacement parts	+$26,400
Remaining products	+$16,800
Total	+$91,200

The first two product groups account for $74,400 of that increase. Inspect their boxes before deciding what to change.

Annual increase on DIM-rated shipments, included in the $277,200 total. This is an affected-shipment breakdown, not pure DIM attribution or recoverable packaging savings.

Give your team
something to act on.

Trace the finding to the shipment, box, and billable weight. Know what to investigate before changing your operation.

Activity 2 steps

Take the finding to your packaging team.

These representative shipments connect the product to the box and the billable weight.

Product / box	Actual	Billable
Service kits18 × 14 × 10 in.DEMO-KIT-A12-001	7 lb	19 lb
Replacement parts16 × 12 × 10 in.DEMO-PART-B24-001	6 lb	14 lb

Confirm product fit and protection needs, then calculate alternative packaging before changing it.

DIM divisor 139. Product mappings and dimension evidence are required. Billed weight alone does not prove DIM impact.

Don’t lose the thread.

Turn the investigation into a weekly watch. Keep the affected products and boxes in view as your shipping changes.

Keep watching these products and boxes every week.

Packaging impact watch

Service kits + replacement parts

Weekly · By product and box · Same investigation

The GRI is only
part of the story.

After changes take effect, isolate what carrier pricing added to your costs. Replay the same eligible shipments under the same agreement to separate supported rate, surcharge, and fuel-table changes from changes in your shipping mix.

20 months. 20 carrier pricing changes.

Dec 22, 2024
Same shipments. Same agreement.
Dec 23, 2024
2025 rate increase + fees + fuel table
Dec 29, 2024
Demand surcharges: low phase
Jan 19, 2025
Holiday demand surcharges end
Mar 10, 2025
Ground + Air fuel table
Mar 24, 2025
More fees subject to fuel surcharges
Jun 1, 2025
Delivery + remote-area ZIP changes
Jun 2, 2025
Zone 7+: handling + large + over-max rates
Jun 23, 2025
Ground + Air fuel table
Aug 18, 2025
Package dimensions rounded up
Sep 28, 2025
Demand surcharges: Section A
Oct 26, 2025
Demand surcharges: Section B
Nov 23, 2025
Demand surcharges: high phase
Dec 21, 2025
Delivery + remote-area ZIP changes
Dec 22, 2025
2026 rate increase + accessorial fees
Dec 28, 2025
Demand surcharges: low phase
Jan 5, 2026
Ground + Air fuel table
Jan 18, 2026
Holiday demand surcharges end
Jan 26, 2026
Handling + large-package cubic rules
Mar 9, 2026
Ground + Air fuel table
Apr 13, 2026
Ground + Air fuel table

+19.8%total carrier-driven costFuel prices held constant

0% baseline

UPS · Dec ’24Aug ’26

Same shipments. Same agreement. Carrier fuel-table changes included.

What’s hiding in
your shipping costs?

See ParcelAdvisor in action

Know what’s changing your shipping costs.And what to do about it.

Your rates are capped.Your discounts could still disappear.

What the cap covers

What the restart changes

Keep the two effects separate

Take this back to the carrier

Go back to your carrier.With the evidence.

Three actions before the change.

Where does the increaseland in your business?

Follow the costinto the box.

Give your teamsomething to act on.

Don’t lose the thread.

The GRI is onlypart of the story.

20 months. 20 carrier pricing changes.

What’s hiding inyour shipping costs?

Know what’s changing your shipping costs.
And what to do about it.

Your rates are capped.
Your discounts could still disappear.

Go back to your carrier.
With the evidence.

Where does the increase
land in your business?

Follow the cost
into the box.

Give your team
something to act on.

The GRI is only
part of the story.

What’s hiding in
your shipping costs?