The following examples are divided into Cost Type.
Remember that rules are cumulative, in that the system looks at each rule in turn and sums the costs of the individual rules. Therefore, you can have a combination of rules of different types for each carrier service.
Note
Before going through the examples, ensure that you have been through the Cost Rule Components.
If a carrier service is to charge £5.47 per parcel during the summer of 2020, you might set up the following rule with a Cost Type of Parcel Count:
Note
The upper parcel limit is determined by the particular carrier service(s), and so you should set this appropriately.
The above rule is written in English as: "If there are between 1.00 and 100.00 parcels in the consignment, add £5.47 to the cost. Then add £5.47 for every additional parcel."
During the period 7 May 2020-7 September 2020, it will cause £5.47 to be added to the cost of a single parcel, plus £5.47 to be added for every additional parcel (i.e. a BaseCost of £5.47 plus a UnitCost of £5.47 for every additional parcel).
It is possible to charge by Consignment Weight, Consignment Volumetric Weight or Parcel Volumetric Weight (based on the sum of the weights of the individual parcels).
Note
Volumetric Weight refers to the overall size of a package or parcel and is measured in volumetric kilograms. It is calculated by multiplying the length, width and height of a parcel (in cm) and dividing the result by 5000 (although some carriers use a divisor of 4000).
Consignment Weight Example
As a basic example, if a carrier service wants to charge £3.00 If a package weighs between 5.00 kg and 999.00 kg, and then add £1.50 for every additional 2.00 kg, effective immediately, you might set up the following rule with a Cost Type of Consignment Weight:
The above rule is written in English as: "If the consignment weighs between 5.00 kg and 999.00 kg, add £3.00 to the cost. Then add £1.50 for every additional 2.00 kg."
This means that, if a consignment weighs 9.00 kg for example, then the above rule will cause £6.00 to be added to the cost (a BaseCost of £3.00 plus a UnitCost of 2 x £1.50 = £3.00).
A Note of Caution about Weight Rules
Let us say that you wanted to add a rule with a Cost Type of Consignment Weight that is intended to apply a cost of £5.00 for every consignment weighing 0-1 kg, and then an additional £2 for every additional kg thereafter, up to 30 kg. You might initially think that the single following rule (written in English) might accomplish this:
If the consignment weighs between 0.00 kg and 30.00 kg, add £5.00 to the cost. Then add £2.00 for every additional 1.00 kg.
Most of the time, this rule will produce the desired results. However, for a 1 kg consignment, it will add £5.00 (for the BaseCost) and then £2.00 (for the additional 1 kg), generating a cost of £7.00 instead of the expected £5.00.
The way around this is to create two separate cost rules:
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The first one should contain just the
BaseCostand handle any shipments in the range 0-1 kg: -
The second rule should contain both the
BaseCostandUnitCost, and handle any shipments in the range 1-30 kg:
Note
The first rule will be ignored for any consignments over 1 kg, and the second rule will be ignored for any consignments under 1 kg.
Volumetric Weight Example
Now let us take the example of a Parcel Volumetric Weight rule. If a carrier wants to charge £20.00 for a kg of combined parcel volumetric weight, and then an additional £0.50 per kg thereafter, the following two rules are required (bearing in mind the Note of Caution about Weight Rules):
The above rule takes care of the case where the volumetric weight is one kg, and the rule below takes care of the remaining cases:
A carrier service may levy an additional cost if a package exceeds a particular length (Cost Type of Longest Dimension), or if it exceeds a 'Max. Girth' (Cost Type of Longest Dimension plus Girth).
Note
The Girth of a package is the sum of the measurements of the two smallest dimensions multiplied by 2:
The ‘Max. Girth’ refers to the maximum combined Girth and Length (L).
For example, the service may charge an additional £5.00 for any consignment that has a girth in excess of 140 cm:
The above rule is written in English as: "If the longest dimension plus girth exceeds 140.00 cm, add 5.00 to the cost."
As an example, the carrier service may charge for insuring a package that has a value of in excess of £100.00:
The above rule is written in English as: "If the requested insurance is between 100.00 and 200.00, add 0.30, to the cost. Then add 0.30 for every additional 1.00."
If, say, a consignment has an insurance value of £110.00, then £3.30 will be added to the cost.
The possible types of surcharge rule are:
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Fuel Surcharge, where a specified percentage of the overall consignment cost (inclusive of all other surcharges) is applied.
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Address Type Surcharge, where a flat amount is charged depending on whether delivery is to a business or private residence,
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POD (Proof Of Delivery) Surcharge, which is applied per parcel to all carrier services other than the 'non-signature' ones (see below).
For example, a carrier service may add a POD surcharge of £2.00 for every parcel that has to be signed for. You might create the following rule and apply it to the services to which POD applies:
The above rule is written in English as: "A flat surcharge of £2.00 for the first parcel in the consignment requiring a signature. Then add £2.00 for every additional parcel."