Shipping delay causes can vary from backed-up traffic to missed pickups and everything in between. And whether you’re a frequent shipper or not, you know that delayed deliveries are the worst. Even though they occur and are a part of life in the logistics world, you don’t have to let them hold back your shipping strategy. Understanding the most common causes of shipping delays and incorporating different contingency plans into your business continuity plan will help mitigate disruptions to your business. Learn more about the top 5 shipping delay causes so you can ship smarter.
Top 5 Shipping Delay Causes
5. Weather
Safety is a top priority for everyone involved in moving freight cargo. You never know what the weather has in store for a particular area, creating many freight transport risks. If there are dangerous road conditions due to bad weather at any part of your freight’s transit, delays can be expected.
Weather affects your freight in more ways than you think! In addition to less-than-ideal road conditions, you can bet that terminal shutdowns, power outages, and ensuing capacity limitations are all side effects of bad weather impacting freight shipping. Wherever you are shipping to, stay on top of the weather conditions of the transit lane your freight is on to stay informed about possible delays. While the weather might be sunny where you are, your cargo could pass through lousy weather during transit. A weather shipping delay causes frustrating stress because it is unpredictable and unavoidable.
4. Economic Conditions
If you’ve been online shopping recently, you may have noticed an increase in the difficulty of finding in-stock items or have been at the tail end of surprisingly long delivery time ranges. Higher shipping demand means less available capacity. Take the semiconductor shortage impacting the electronics industries, for example.
Peak shipping seasons for produce and other industries also create capacity shortages and delayed deliveries. Make it part of your shipping strategy to research the busy seasons of freight shipping all year round and understand how truckload capacity works. This will help you secure better rates and find accommodation before other businesses do.
3. Lack of Proper Technology
As a business operator, visibility and insight into your freight shipping strategy are essential. Sadly, not every shipper has access to a transport management system (TMS) that does everything shipping-related for them. Carrier searches, lane and rate comparisons, tracking capabilities, paperwork management, and more can all be found within a TMS. A TMS can help provide shippers with more insight by providing more information about their freight shipments.
2. Failed Delivery Attempts
Sometimes, carriers cannot deliver a shipment to the delivery location for several reasons. It could depend on the delivery location and the unique requirements that the site requires. Even the most experienced shippers sometimes forget to request the proper accessorials on their Bill of Lading (BOL) when needed. For example, if your cargo is being shipped to an at-home business that doesn’t have a loading dock, but you didn’t add the liftgate accessorial during the quote process, the driver won’t be able to deliver your shipment.
Damaged and lost cargo can also be lumped into this section. Protecting your shipment from cargo theft is one of the most important things you can do, and making sure you effectively package your freight the right way will reduce the risk of damage and delayed deliveries.
Get a comprehensive look into accessorials by visiting our Guide to Accessorials.
1. Not Partnering with a 3PL
The top cause of delayed deliveries is not partnering with a third-party logistics company (3PL) like FreightCenter. 3PLs have the tools and resources shippers need to overcome potentially delayed deliveries. Leverage FreightCenter’s network of fully vetted, reliable carriers to source capacity and get the lowest rates around. Our world-class customer service and TMS technology work for you to find the solutions that fit your shipments. Don’t let delayed deliveries get you down. Instead, work with the shipping experts at FreightCenter and get a free online quote or call 8007167608.
