Not all Ground and Express packages are delivered on-time despite carrier guarantees. In fact, if a package arrives late or goes missing, there may not even be any recourse with the carrier. Instead, you’re stuck with a complaint from your customers that could impact your bottom line and a loss of revenue by refunding the client’s shipping costs.

But how does this incident end up happening and what keeps your carrier from being held accountable for their lateness? It turns out, it could be your parcel shipping contract.

What does my parcel contract have to do with lost revenue?

There’s a special waiver in some parcel shipping contracts that you should never sign when the time comes for a parcel contract negotiation. This special waiver is called a carrier GSR waiver. GSR waivers stand for Guaranteed Service Refund. GSR waivers essentially prevent you from recovering the costs to ship a package to a client if the carrier delivers the client’s package late. By signing GSR waivers, you’re essentially lifting any accountability off the shoulders of your carrier. As a result, you could lose anywhere between 3% and 5% in revenue.

How can I exorcise the ghosts of my missing parcels?

The good news is that you don’t need to worry about being haunted by the mistakes of your carrier. AFMS is a parcel contract optimization service that can help you get better discounts and incentives through your parcel contract by keeping your carrier’s Service Guarantee Policy part of your contract. That means your carrier will be held accountable for delivering your parcels to your clients on-time.

It’s important to note that you’re not required to sign GSR waivers and you don’t need to sign a waiver to get the best possible incentives out of your contract. AFMS not only offers parcel contract optimization but also parcel contract negotiation support.
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We understand how difficult it can be to navigate a shipping contract, especially when you don’t want to ruin the business relationship you have with your carrier. But we also know how important it is to your business to hold your carrier accountable. With approximately 13 billion parcels shipped in just 2018 alone, GSR waivers could cost you some serious revenue. For more information on GSR waivers or to learn more about our parcel contract negotiation services, contact AFMS today.