Guides

A ten-minute dock routine that prevents most LTL reclasses

Updated October 8, 2026

Disputing a correction recovers money once. Preventing it saves the same money every week. Most corrections trace back to a bill of lading that described the product instead of the pallet. This routine takes about ten minutes per shipment and removes the usual causes.

Measure the pallet, not the product

• Measure after wrapping, at the longest, widest and tallest points. If a carton overhangs the pallet by an inch, the length is 49, not 48.
• Include the pallet in the height. A standard pallet adds about five to six inches.
• Round up to the next whole inch. Dimensioners do not round in your favor.
• Measure every pallet that differs. Do not copy the first one down the BOL.

Weigh the pallet, not the product

• Use a floor scale if you have one. If you do not, add carton weights, the pallet, and a few pounds for wrap and corner boards.
• Write the gross weight on the BOL. The carrier's scale weighs everything that sits on it.

Take two photos

One of the whole pallet from a corner, so two sides and the top are visible. One with a tape measure held against the height. Name the files with the BOL number. This is the single most useful habit in the routine: it costs twenty seconds and it is the evidence that wins disputes.

Describe the freight the way the classification does

• Put the NMFC item number and sub on the BOL, not only the class.
• Put the dimensions on the BOL. Since the density scale took effect, a BOL without dimensions invites an inspection.
• Use the commodity description from the NMFC item, not your internal product name.
• If the freight can be stacked, do not label it otherwise. Cones and do-not-stack stickers can turn a 50-inch pallet into a 96-inch bill.

Know where your class breaks are

For each product you ship regularly, calculate density and note how far it sits from the next break on the scale. A product at 15.3 lb per cu ft is class 70 on a good day and class 85 on a bad one. For those:

• See whether a small packaging change gets you clear of the line: a shorter pallet, a tighter stack pattern, one fewer layer.
• If not, quote and ship at the higher class. A predictable rate beats a correction plus an inspection fee.

Fix the template

Most shippers generate BOLs from a saved template or from their shipping software. If the template holds a default class, weight or dimension, every shipment inherits it. Review templates whenever packaging changes, and check that your software sends actual dimensions to the carrier, not a stored default.

Review corrections monthly

List last month's corrected invoices by product and lane. Corrections cluster. Three reclasses on the same product is a BOL problem you can fix. Three on the same lane, across products, is a terminal to raise with your carrier rep.