ShipStation Carrier Adjustments

Carrier adjustments are a frustrating reality of shipping that most shippers will have to deal with from time to time. These adjustments can affect your shipping costs and delivery timelines. This article can help you understand what adjustments are, why they occur, and offer ways to minimize their impact on your business.

Carrier adjustments are charges billed by the carrier after the parcel has shipped if the carrier finds a difference in the rate that was initially paid versus what should have been charged.

Adjustments most frequently occur when the weight, dimensions, and packaging details on the label do not match your actual package. They can also occur for oversized packages, packages that require additional handling, or if the selected service or mail class is not valid for the package.

Entering accurate information for each shipment and pulling in weights from a scale using ShipStation Connect will help avoid adjustments related to inaccurate shipment configurations, which are the most common types of adjustments.

Other possible reasons for adjustments include:

  • A package that is an unconventional shape, like a cylinder or tube

  • Package dimensions exceed the service or carrier maximum

  • The package triggers dimensional weight pricing but no dimensions were entered prior to purchase

  • Saturday deliveries

  • The package is packed in something other than cardboard, such as wrapped in plastic or encased in metal

  • The recipient address is incorrect or incomplete

  • The label was attached incorrectly, so the barcode could not be scanned

  • The package must be returned due to incorrect Harmonization codes or missing IOSS

  • Residential or out-of-area deliveries

  • Fuel surcharges or Peak surcharges

Automate Shipping Workflows to Avoid Adjustments

You can configure shipments with various automated methods to take the guesswork out of your shipping process. For details on using different types of automation, please review the product defaults, service mapping, and automation rules articles. 

When shipping with a ShipStation Carrier, if the carrier that delivers the parcel determines any of these adjustment reasons apply to your parcel, it could result in the carrier issuing a rate adjustment. When this occurs, ShipStation will apply the carrier's adjustment to your ShipStation Balance.

ShipStation will automatically debit the difference between the original label price paid at the time of label creation and the price of the final label from your ShipStation Balance once the carrier has sent us the corrected label fee. Please be aware that adjustments can result in a negative balance if the adjustment is greater than your available funds.

View Carrier Adjustment Transactions

How you view ShipStation Carrier adjustments currently differs depending on whether your account is US-based or based in any other ShipStation home country. Keep in mind that no matter which country your account in based in, the adjustments you see will only be for ShipStation Carrier shipments.

🇺🇸 View Adjustments US Accounts

For US accounts to view adjustment reports:

  1. Click the Actions menu Actions menu next to the USPS option. Choose View Reports.

    Carriers settings for ShipStation Carriers USPS, arrow points to Action menu

    This will open a new tab in your browser to the account reports screen.

  2. Click the Balances option.

    STAMPSACCT_Report_Balances_MRK.png
  3. Change the report type to Transactions if not selected already.

    StampsACCT_Reports_Transaction_MRK.png
  4. Find the date of the transaction to view any corresponding adjustments.

    UPS_SCS_adjustments_report.png
  5. Click on the Adjustment ID link to see the adjustment details.

View on the Transaction History Page

For accounts not based in the US, adjustment will appear on the Balance tab of the Transaction History page, typically within a few weeks of the original label's ship date.

  1. Click Transaction History.

    The transaction history tile is highlighted on the Payments and Subscriptions screen.

    The Transaction History page will open and display your balance history in a grid.

  2. View your adjustments by reviewing the Type, Credit, and Cost columns of the Balance Tab. 

    Settings>Carriers>View Transaction History> Balance tab with carrier adjustments highlighted

    The Type column will describe the type of transaction. 

    If you owe additional funds for a label, you will see "Adjustment" in the Type column and the amount debited in the Cost column.

  3. Click on the date to view the transaction details, which will include the adjustment reason and cost.

    SET_Carriers_TransactionHistory-Balance-AdjustmentsCostPU.png

How to Dispute an Adjustment

If you feel an adjustment has been applied to your account incorrectly, contact ShipStation support and provide the following information about the shipment and adjustment transaction:

  • Tracking number

  • Charge amount

  • Dispute Information (including adjustment reason and package dimensions)

  • Proof against the adjustment. This can include photo evidence and invoices.

Common Adjustments by Carrier

We've listed many of the common adjustment reasons and details for various ShipStation Carriers below. While this is not an exhaustive list of all carriers or potential adjustment reasons, it covers many of the most common adjustment reasons to help guide you in your shipping workflows.

For more details about the types of adjustments a carrier may apply, please visit the carriers' websites.

DPD Adjustments

DPD from ShipStation is available to UK and Germany-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Handling Charge

DPD Classic Road & DPD Domestic

  • Parcel is greater than 30kg

  • Has a length greater than 100cm

  • Has a girth greater than 300 cm (Length + ( 2 x Width + 2 x Height))

Non Coms Handling Charge

DPD Domestic

  • Goods wrapped in plastic or shrink-wrap

  • Goods that do not have a flat surface

  • Flatpacks

  • Goods that are unevenly weighted

  • Goods not in a cardboard box

  • Tubes

DPD EU Export Return

DPD Classic Road

A return that charges for parcels that are returned from the following European countries to UK:

  • Belgium

  • Croatia

  • Denmark

  • Estonia

  • Finland

  • France

  • Germany

  • Hungary

  • Italy

  • Lithuania

  • Netherlands

  • Poland

  • Portugal

  • Romania

  • Slovakia

  • Slovenia

  • Sweden

  • Switzerland

DPD Unsuccessful EU Export

DPD Classic Road

Returns of parcels if unable to export.

For example, if incorrect details are provided such as:

  • HS code does not match description

  • Prohibited product for export

  • IOSS required for delivering country

EvRi Adjustments

Evri from ShipStation is available to UK-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Relabeling

EvRi Domestic

Undelivered / Return to Sender

EvRi Domestic

Light & Large Rate

EvRi Domestic

Packages with dimensions over 120cm or 245 cm girth or with a weight greater than 15kg Weight.

Light & Large Surcharges are based on the surcharge less the cost of the label purchased.

Proof of Delivery (POD)

EvRi Domestic

GlobalPost Adjustments

GlobalPost from ShipStation is available to US, Canada, Australia, and UK-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge

Services

Available Details

Weight Adjustment

GlobalPost Economy Int'l

If max weight is exceeded

Under/Oversized

GlobalPost Economy Int'l

If max size limit is exceeded

Unreadable barcode

GlobalPost Economy Int'l

Handling and relabeling fee

Handed to EvRi driver

EvRi services

Handling fee when package is handed directly to EvRi driver, not dropped off

ParcelForce Worldwide Adjustments

ParcelForce from ShipStation is available to UK-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Return To Sender

All Domestic services

Booking in Slot for Delivery Point

All Domestic services

Oversize Parcel

Express 24 & Express 48

Parcels that are greater than 30 kg and have a combined length & girth greater than 300cm, and must not exceed 150 cm in length.

Saturday Delivery

All Domestic services

Packaging Repair / Repackage

All Domestic services

Manual Handling

All Domestic services

Items between 110cm and up to 150 cm or with a second largest dimension greater than 70cm will always be processed manually, incurring an additional charge.

Items up to 110 cm in length or where the second largest dimension is 70cm or below may need to be processed manually if they are not packaged correctly.

See ParcelForce Worldwide's guidelines on packaging and manual handling.

Incorrect or incomplete address

All Domestic services

Sendle Adjustments

Sendle from ShipStation is available to Canada and Australia-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Incorrect Size Declared

All Services

Oversized Penalty

All Services

Package Type

All Services

Underdeclared

All Services

Incorrect Size Declared

All Services

Oversized Penalty

All Services

Package Type

All Services

UPS Adjustments

UPS from ShipStation is available to US, Canada, and UK-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Address Change

All Services

Additional Handling

All Services

  • Any article that is encased in an outside shipping container made of metal or wood

  • Any cylindrical item, such as a barrel, drum, pail, or tire that is not fully encased in a corrugated cardboard shipping container

  • Any package with the longest side exceeding 100cm (39.5") or a second-longest side exceeding 76cm (30")

  • Any package with an actual weight greater than 70 pounds (32 kg)

  • Each package in a shipment where the average weight per package is greater than 70 pounds (32 kg) and the weight for each package is not specified on the source document or the UPS automated shipping system used

Large Package Surcharge

All Services

A package is considered a “Large Package” when its length plus girth [girth = (2 x width) + (2 x height)] combined exceeds 300cm but does not exceed the maximum UPS size of 400cm

Large packages are subject to a minimum billable weight of 40kg in addition to the Large Package Surcharge

Over Maximum Limits Charge

All Services

Packages with an actual weight of more than 70kg, or that exceed 274cm in length, or exceed a total of 400cm in length and girth combined [girth = (2 x width) + (2 x height)], are not accepted for transportation. If found in the UPS small package system, they are subject to an additional charge

Packages exceeding 400cm in length and girth combined are also subject to the Large Package Surcharge

Saturday Delivery

All Services

UK Border Fee

All Services

Packages between Northern Ireland and Great Britain

Alternative Address

All Services

Yodel Adjustments

DPD from ShipStation is available to UK-based ShipStation accounts.

Charge Type

Services Affected

Available Details

Shipment over 10kg

All services

Return to sender

All services