Shipping and Freight Glossary

An extra fee for a service beyond standard dock-to-dock service, such as a liftgate or residential delivery.

A scheduled delivery window arranged with the consignee, usually for an extra fee.

The shipping document that serves as the contract, receipt and condition record for the freight.

A truck with a cargo box on the same chassis, typically 16 to 26 feet, for larger or heavier expedited freight.

The truck and trailer, usually double-decker, that carries cars from one place to another.

A smaller van for one or two pallets or boxed freight, used when speed matters and the load is light.

The company that actually moves the freight with its own trucks and drivers.

A sea-freight rule: the seller pays to ship the goods to the destination port, but risk passes to the buyer once they are on board.

A sea-freight rule: like CFR, but the seller also buys minimum cargo insurance for the buyer.

Like CPT, but the seller also buys wide all-risks insurance for the buyer under Incoterms 2020.

The inspection record the driver completes at pickup and delivery, marking any damage on a diagram of the car.

The party receiving the freight.

The seller pays for transport to a named destination, but risk passes to the buyer when the goods are handed to the first carrier.

A rigid wooden or plastic enclosure around freight that is fragile, awkward or cannot be stacked.

Moving freight directly from one truck to another at a terminal, with little or no storage.

The volume of a shipment: length times width times height, in inches, divided by 1,728.

The seller delivers to the buyer’s named place, ready to unload, and carries the risk until then. The buyer handles import duties.

The seller delivers to the buyer and pays everything, including import duties and taxes, and carries all risk until delivery.

A vehicle booked just for your freight, which goes straight from pickup to delivery.

A shipment’s weight divided by its volume, in pounds per cubic foot. It drives freight class for most general freight.

A fee charged when a driver is kept waiting at pickup or delivery beyond the free time allowed.

The carrier picks the car up at or near your address and delivers it to or near the destination address.

Like DAP, but the seller also unloads the goods at the destination. It replaced DAT in Incoterms 2020.

Short-distance trucking of freight, most often a container between a port or rail yard and a nearby warehouse.

Shipping a vehicle inside a closed trailer that protects it from weather and road debris, at a higher price.

Moving a bike inside a closed trailer, which most of our delivered motorcycle shipments used.

Freight moved on a dedicated vehicle, usually a van or a truck, directly to the destination, faster than standard service.

The seller has the goods ready at its own premises and the buyer arranges and pays for everything from there.

A sea-freight rule: the seller delivers the goods next to the ship at the named port, and the buyer takes over from there.

The seller hands the export-cleared goods to the buyer’s carrier at a named place, and risk passes at that handover.

In international trade the seller loads the goods on the ship; in US domestic use it says where ownership and risk pass.

A company that arranges transportation between shippers and carriers without owning the trucks.

A number from 50 to 500 that describes how costly freight is to move, based on density, handling, stowability and liability.

The receiver pays the carrier for the freight when the shipment is delivered.

The shipper pays the carrier for the freight up front, so the receiver is not billed.

The agreement on who pays for shipping, who is responsible in transit, and where delivery ends.

One shipper uses the whole trailer, and the freight goes straight from pickup to delivery.

A charge that adjusts the rate for the price of diesel, usually shown as a percentage of the base charge.

A premium option that promises delivery by a certain time or date, for an extra charge.

Hazardous materials, which need special paperwork, labeling and carriers certified to move them.

Time-sensitive freight moved on a pickup truck with a flatbed or gooseneck trailer.

A network where freight flows through central hubs instead of going straight from origin to destination.

Eleven standard trade rules from the ICC that set who arranges, pays for and is responsible for goods at each stage.

A car that cannot start, steer, brake or roll under its own power, and needs a winch or a forklift to load.

Delivery past the dock or curb into the building, which is an extra service.

A specific origin-and-destination route, such as Dallas to Chicago, that freight prices are set for.

A hydraulic platform on the back of a truck that lowers freight to the ground when there is no loading dock.

A pickup or delivery location with restricted access, such as a school, church, storage facility or construction site.

The long-distance leg of a shipment between two terminals.

The length of trailer floor a shipment takes up. Carriers use it to price long or oversized loads.

Freight that shares a trailer with other shippers’ freight, so you pay only for the space you use.

The lowest price a carrier will charge for any shipment on a lane.

A wooden crate or frame built around a bike so it ships as freight on a pallet.

The lowest price a carrier will accept to move a bike, no matter how short the distance.

The system that assigns a freight class to a commodity.

Shipping a vehicle on an open trailer, the standard and cheapest way to move a car.

A flat platform, commonly 48 by 40 inches, that lets freight be moved by forklift or pallet jack.

A shipment that fills part of a trailer but is booked as a dedicated or semi-dedicated move.

The local legs of an LTL move, where a driver collects freight from the shipper or delivers it to the consignee.

The range of days in which a carrier can pick up your car, because routes and drivers shift.

The shipper pays the carrier first, then adds the freight cost to the invoice sent to the buyer.

A tracking number the carrier assigns to a shipment.

Delivery to a home or a location treated as residential, which usually costs more.

When a carrier weighs or measures a shipment at a terminal and re-rates it because the weight, size or class differ from the bill of lading.

Freight picked up and delivered on the same day, usually by a van or box truck dispatched on request.

The party sending the freight and handing it to the carrier.

Fabric loops that attach a tie-down strap to the handlebars or frame without scratching the bike.

A large cargo van that carries about 3 to 4 pallets and around 3,000 lb, used for expedited freight.

A carrier facility where LTL freight is sorted, combined and moved between trucks.

You drop the car at a carrier’s storage lot and collect it at another lot near the destination.

A party other than the shipper or receiver, such as a broker or the buyer’s parent company, is billed for the freight.

A service for bigger LTL shipments, often about 6 or more pallets, that some carriers price as a block.

A fixed stand that holds a motorcycle’s front wheel upright during transport.

A premium delivery that includes inside placement, unpacking or setup, not just dropping freight at the dock.