Third-party shipping is a ShipStation feature that allows you to charge a shipment's label to a third-party account (that is, a postage account not connected to ShipStation). You may want to use this feature if you have an agreement with the shipment's recipient, or another third-party, that they will pay for the shipping of the package.
You will need the third party's postage account number and postal code to configure third-party shipping in ShipStation.
To assign a third-party account to an order:
-
Set the shipping service and package type for the order.
Since ShipStation requires you to first select the correct service, this means you must already have your own carrier account connected to ShipStation.
For example, to bill to a recipient's UPS account, you must have your own UPS account connected to ShipStation, then select a UPS service for that order.
-
Go to Other Shipping Options in the Shipping Sidebar and click the Shipping Account drop-down.
Choose either Third Party or Recipient from the list.
Enter the third party's Account #, Billing Country, and Billing Zip (Postal Code).
Create the label.
ShipStation will send the billing details to the selected carrier, and the carrier will pass on the billing to the correct account.
Tip
If this is something you will do regularly, consider using Automation Rules to automatically apply third-party billing to your orders. Be sure the rule first sets the shipping service and package type correctly, then adds the third-party account details!
The Recipient and Third-Party designations are for information and reporting purposes only. Either option will tell the carrier to charge the entered account.
The third-party account must be approved by the carrier for third-party billing. If you receive an error when attempting to create a label with third-party billing, check with the account owner to ensure it has been approved by the carrier.