These days, carrier accessorial charges are part and parcel of shipments in the supply chain. And they can happen for any number of reasons: in-transit, administrative and equipment. Above and beyond the standard pick-up and delivery fees, freight accessorial charges are assessed and applied by freight transportation carriers for the additional services that they offer. Think charges for additional labor, and extra time and fuel. And because they’re mostly levied after shipments have been completed, they can be challenging to factor into total transportation costs for trucking company operators. But let’s face it, you cannot avoid accessorial fees altogether. However, knowing which ones to anticipate in the first place can go an incredibly long way. To avoid any surprises, here’s a helpful breakdown of the most typical accessorial charges: 

The 21 most common accessorial charges

1. Layover

‍First, if a truck is unable to be loaded or unloaded on its scheduled delivery date—for whatever reason—it can lead to the carrier’s loss of productivity and inability to earn, for an entire day. So, a layover fee is applied to the final bill.

2. Redelivery

‍A carrier may need to redeliver an order if a receiver isn’t around to accept the delivery or they simply turn away a shipment outlined in the bill of lading (BoL). This translates into repeat jobs and missed incomes, as a pricey redelivery charge is levied. 

3. Limited access

‍At certain times, a commercial truck driver goes the extra mile to make a delivery, like tracking down shipment recipients or dealing with security checks in schools, and at government and health facilities. And this leads to a limited access charge.

4. Lumper or driver load/unload

‍A driver may also need to load or unload a freight, themselves, and bill for the extra work. This charge is then passed on as a lumper or driver load/unload fee.

5. Liftgate

‍A driver may have to load and unload shipments easily and quickly, too. In some cases, completing a delivery may require special liftgate equipment like a hydraulic platform, on the back of the truck. And this means a liftgate fee. 

6. Reclassification and reweighing

‍If shipping details, like classification, dimension and weight, are incorrect or just not provided, work gets disrupted and orders have to be revisited. And to make up for this additional work, a reclassification and re-weighing fee is added.

7. Advance notification

‍If a carrier needs to notify a consignee before making a delivery, an advance notification fee is applied for all of the extra effort.

8. Metro pickup/delivery

‍Let’s face it, it’s difficult to navigate congested cities, let alone find parking in them. This decreases driver productivity and ultimately this lost time leads to a metro pickup or delivery charge.

9. Inside delivery

‍Carrying a shipment over curbs and up stairs, at a residence, means additional equipment  like a pallet jack or more humanpower are required. But this so-called ‘white-glove service’ comes with an inside delivery charge.

10. Residential

‍Delivering to a residence is also much different than unloading a freight in a commercial office or warehouse. It calls for extra work and time, and to make up for this, a residential fee is charged. 

11. Oversized/overlength

‍Whenever a shipment takes up more space than a pallet, carriers have to reconfigure their loads. If it exceeds 12 feet, this makes the shipment more expensive to transport, so an oversized/overlength fee is charged to offset the cost. 

12. Chassis

‍When there is no chassis at a ramp or port, and one has to be moved to the container location, a chassis fee is applied for the consignee’s use.

13. Fuel surcharge

‍Depending on the current price of fuel, a fuel surcharge can be added. This way, a carrier doesn’t have to go through the trouble of forecasting this cost.

14. Sort/seg

‍A driver may have to break up a shipment and move an order from between pallets. Based on package size and weight, a sort/seg charge then occurs. 

15. Truck ordered not used (TONU)

‍A carrier may include a TONU fee if an order happens to fall through. But this is only applied if a shipment is cancelled after a predetermined cut-off period.

16. After-hours delivery

‍A carrier may include an after-hour delivery fee if they have to make a shipment outside of standard operating hours or have difficulties getting to where they need to go. This is to make up for their lost time and energy. 

17. Additional stop

‍There may be two or more destinations for just one shipment, requiring a driver to make multiple stops. This tends to delay all of the driver’s shipments, which carriers have to make up for through an additional stop fee.

18. Diversion miles

‍At times, a carrier has to drive to a location that is different from the one previously stated by the shipper or receiver. And when the agreed-upon mileage is exceeded, a divergent mile charge is incurred to make up for fuel and lost time.

19. Storage

‍When a shipment has to be stored by a carrier, then a storage charge—either by the day or the hour—is applied.

20. Detention

‍‍Most shipping contracts allow for some detention time, unless of course a driver is detained well beyond the stated time. Take those in dockyards with exceptionally long wait times, for example. That’s when a detention charge is added. 

21. Hazardous materials

‍Finally, all transported hazardous materials (hazmat) need to be documented, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). And this leads to added paperwork and additional risk, so a hazmat charge is typically added.

How Rose Rocket helps manage accessorial charges

Keeping in mind the most common accessorial charges, it’s important to note that some transportation management systems help account for these for your business. Rose Rocket, allows you to create your own custom accessorials: you can simply add these in any invoice or quote, or directly add them to customer profiles. In just a few clicks, you can automatically include these additional charges—anytime you send out your invoice. 

If you’re curious to learn more about streamlining your trucking business, be sure to check out Rose Rocket, the #1 rated TMS on the market. 

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