This article talks about what packages will get a Additional Handling charge and what the cost for that charge is
The UPS Additional Handling Charge is an additional fee that may be assessed on packages that require special handling beyond the standard shipping practices. This charge is determined by UPS in its sole discretion and is applicable to both domestic and international services. The purpose of this charge is to cover the additional resources and handling efforts required for certain packages that fall outside the usual shipping parameters.
Criteria for Assessing Additional Handling Charge
The UPS Additional Handling Charge is applied to packages that meet one or more of the following criteria:
1. Weight:
a. Domestic Shipments:
- Any package with an actual weight exceeding 50 pounds.
- Each package in a shipment where the average weight per package is greater than 50 pounds, and the weight for each package is not specified on the source document or the UPS automated shipping system used.
b. International Shipments:
- Any package with an actual weight exceeding 70 pounds.
- Each package in a shipment where the average weight per package is greater than 70 pounds, and the weight for each package is not specified on the source document or the UPS automated shipping system used.
2. Length plus Girth:
Any package with its length (longest side of the package) plus girth [(2 x width) + (2 x height)] combined exceeding 105 inches.
3. Length:
Any package with the longest side exceeding 48 inches.
4. Width:
Any package with its second-longest side exceeding 30 inches.
5. Packaging:
The UPS Additional Handling Charge applies to packages that do not conform to the standard corrugated cardboard shipping container guidelines. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Any article that is not fully encased in a corrugated cardboard shipping container, including tires.
- Any package with an outer shipping container not made of corrugated cardboard, such as canvas, leather, metal, wood, hard plastic, soft plastic (e.g., plastic bag), or expanded polystyrene foam (e.g., Styrofoam).
- Any article that is encased in a soft-sided pack (e.g., poly bags and bubble mailers) that exceeds 18 inches along its longest side or 14 inches along its second-longest side or 6 inches in height.
- Any package with an outer shipping container covered in shrink wrap or stretch wrap.
- Any package bound with metal, plastic, or cloth banding, or that has wheels, casters, handles, or straps (including packages where the outer surface area is loosely wrapped or where the contents protrude outside the container surface).
- Any cylindrical-like item, including but not limited to barrels, buckets, cans, drums, mailing tubes, or pails.
- Any package routed through UPS’s irregular package sortation process, including but not limited to packages 1 inch or less in height.
- Any other package that requires special handling, as determined by UPS in its sole discretion.
Application of Additional Handling Charge
When a package meets multiple criteria listed above, only one Additional Handling charge will be assessed, following this order:
- Weight
- Length plus Girth
- Length
- Width
- Packaging
Pricing is as follows and is based on the zone the package went:
Domestic Zones
2 3-4 5+
– Weight $29.00 $31.50 $34.50
– Length + girth $18.50 $20.50 $23.50
– Length $18.50 $20.50 $23.50
– Width $18.50 $20.50 $23.50
– Packaging $16.50 $19.00 $20.50
International $24.00
It's important to note that an Additional Handling charge will not be assessed when a Large Package Surcharge is applied. The Large Package Surcharge is a separate fee that applies to oversized packages exceeding specific length and girth dimensions.
Customers should be aware of these criteria and take necessary precautions to ensure their packages meet UPS's standard shipping guidelines to avoid incurring the Additional Handling Charge. If a package requires special handling, the charge will be automatically applied at the time of shipment processing by UPS.