Using an Express Carrier for E-Commerce

Using an express carrier, including an explainer about door-to-door services and the information required to start ecommerce exports.

What is an express operator?

An express operator offers time definite delivery services for both domestic and international shipments of goods.

Most offer time and day definite global delivery services such as same day, next day and international 2–5-day services as well as economy and bulk shipping options.

Many express operators specialise in the fast and reliable movement of ecommerce goods and will take care of the entire transportation and border clearance service end to end and most offer a door-to-door service.

Some express operators also offer a very wide range of shipping services to support a business’s entire supply chain needs including specialist shipping from fast moving ecommerce goods, to mail, bulk shipments, full truck loads, containers, fulfilment and traditional cargo.

Some specialise in particular sectors including legal, pharmaceuticals, alcohol and food products, urgent spares, time and temperature sensitive commodities, age verified delivery services, payment collection services and returns handling.

Does your logistics provider offer a door-to-door service?

Most express operators offer a door-to-door shipping service that includes all the customs formalities both for UK export and import at the destination alongside the transportation of your parcel from pickup to delivery.

Door to door service is common in the express industry, and most AICES members offer these types of services to support UK exporters and make ecommerce shipping easy and accessible.

Using a door-to-door service is particularly suited to ecommerce (both Business to Consumer B2C and Business to Business B2B) and helps growing ecommerce businesses step into international markets as well as supporting the needs of experienced traders too.

What is a door-to-door service?

Door to door is a service type provided by express operators that includes transport, border clearance and all the necessary processes from collection right through to final delivery by one provider.

To understand door to door it is important to realise that shipping requires several pieces of information and transportation steps to happen seamlessly to get a shipment to a customer reliably and at a fair price across international borders. This includes ecommerce goods and business shipments.

Here are just a few of the parts of an international delivery steps (and data) that need to come together to get a shipment from the UK to your international customer:

• selecting the service level required

• creating shipping documents and the electronic data

• creating shipping labels

• pickup of the goods

• detailed information about the product

• agreeing who will pay both for the transportation and the destination import duties and taxes.

• completion of customs clearance

• completion of safety and security procedures at the border

• delivery of the goods

• tracking and billing

During the shipment journey there is a need for timely, accurate and compliant export and import declarations at the border, and electronic and physical border safety and security processes and associated declarations.  Also the selection of international shipping /linehaul routings and carriers, as well as destination customs clearance and final mile delivery to your customer, often with tracking updates enroute.

These can be daunting to organise individually, and require a level of technical expertise, systems connections and knowledge as well as close coordination via multiple parties throughout the journey of a shipment.

To make it easier express operators provide a “one stop shop” transportation service known as door to door.

Express operators usually offer guaranteed time definite delivery schedules to internation destinations for a fixed price which suit the ecommerce market. They manage the whole process and all the necessary steps during the shipment journey.

What should I expect to be included and excluded in a door-to-door service?

Express operators determine what is included in their door-to-door service. However, these services are typically included.

• Shipping label creation software

• Routine collection from a UK address

• Routine tracking updates and customer service support

• UK export and clearance via HMRC Customs Declaration Service (CDS)

• UK Safety & Security declaration

• Port Inventory / Goods Vehicle Movement Service processing

• Destination Safety & Security declaration

• Routine import customs declaration and clearance

• Delivery to final address

Examples of services that often attract additional fees in addition to the door-to-door service are listed below. You are strongly advised to seek advice from your express operator on their additional fees/exclusions:

• Complex / non-routine customs clearance

• Multi line customs declarations

• Storage fees where delays are not customs or carrier related

• Fees associated to handing over shipments to other carriers or customs agents

• Mandatory disbursements to other government agencies for specific inspection services

• Advancing of duty and taxes to destination customs

• Special services such as out of hours delivery, multiple re-delivery attempts, returns etc.

Why use a door-to-door service?

Express door to door service is reliable, fairly priced and comprehensive. They allow ecommerce operators to offer customer friendly shipping options, and the entire “back office” shipping process is handled for you.

How does an express operator do all of this?

Express operators run efficient highly organised international networks of drivers, vehicles, depots, sortation facilities, linehaul, aircraft and customs brokerages dedicated to providing exclusive support of their ecommerce customers.

These networks, often fully “in-house” with specialist facilities offering dedicated connections with all the bottlenecks in international shipping ironed out. They are specially designed and exist to provide highly reliable express services, run to high standards and strict timelines to connect global trade for all types of customers with many operators specifically geared towards supporting ecommerce operations.

What factors should I consider when selecting an express door to door service?

• What does your customer need?

  • You will need to decide the level of delivery service or options you wish to offer and your customers expect. Who will pay for the service and how is cost and quality of delivery service a factor in your business model?

• Speed of delivery

  • You will need to match your customer expectation and chosen business model to the services offered by express operators. Most operators offer a wide range of global delivery services with time in transit and cost being key factors. The faster and more specific the more costly.

• Cost of delivery

  • International shipping with express operators is highly competitive. Make sure you are comparing like for like services. Time in transit and time of day of pickup and delivery (for example out of hours, weekends, evenings, multiple re-delivery attempts) can all be cost factors.

• Quality of service

  • Consider the level of tracking and billing detail you require, as well as the insurance and claims process, customer and technology support and integration as well as on time delivery performance.

• Access to the service

  • How quick, intuitive, accessible and easy is it to use the express operators’ systems to create shipment labels, organise collections, provide international data and documents and track shipments?

  • What are the steps and timeline to integrate your systems where appropriate to the express operator system?

  • What are the requirements of your internal stakeholders such as sales/customer service, IT, shipping and billing colleagues?

• Service restrictions

  • Check that your specific products are permitted on the selected service

  • Check if any of your products require special security measures or inspections

  • Verify the selected service accepts your product if they are classified as liquids, hazardous, sanitary or phytosanitary, contain batteries, or are flammable.

  • Check for delivery coverage to outlying areas

• Payment of duty and taxes

  • You will need to decide who and how import duties and VAT are being settled at the destination if they apply to your product.

• Additional fees

  • Understand what is not included in the door-to-door service.

What key information do I need to provide to my express operator?

Certain basic information is needed to start shipping door to door with an express operator. This information is required for customs and border security purposes and to allow the efficient processing and delivery of your shipments.

Our focus here is on the customs and border requirements:

• EORI. For UK exports an Economic Operator Registration and Identification number (EORI) is required. This is provided by HMRC here. As a UK exporter your EORI must be provided to your express operator. The true exporter of the goods must be stated.

• Invoice data. Invoice data describing the transaction will be required for both UK export and import at the destination. This will typically include either on the invoice or in the data upload to your express operator. You should check with your operator the exact fields, specifications and other information required.

The basic, typical list for an international ecommerce shipment:

• Full seller business name and address and contact details

• Seller EORI

• Buyer name and address and contact details

• Date

• Reason for sale (e.g ecommerce sale, return, demonstration, sample etc)

• Product details – item level

  • Goods description and where necessary plain English description

  • Quantity, item price, total price by line

  • Commodity code

  • Transport costs where appropriate (depending on terms of sale)

  • Invoice currency

• INCOTERM ©

In addition, you will need all the basic shipment data such as pickup and delivery address, number of packages, weight, service level indicator, contact persons and details.

Your express operator will assist in ensuring that you provide the basic information to accept a shipment into their network for delivery. The seller and buyer remain responsible for providing true and accurate information about the shipment and complying with UK and destination customs and regulatory requirements.

Shipment data with be shared with HMRC, UK Border Force and destination customs authorities for clearance and security purposes.

Shipping tips / avoiding delays.

These are our tips to ensure on time delivery and avoid delays:

• Timely and complete provision of documents and data to your express operator

• Full complete and accurate delivery address and valid postcode/zip code

• Include a contact phone number and email address.

• Avoid generic descriptions / miss described products. Use plain English.

• Value appropriate to the product and all products have a value assigned.

• Ensure parcel contents match data / documents.

• Appropriate outer packaging is used with one shipping label.

• Sender/receiver responds promptly to express operator questions and queries

How do I find an express operator?

AICES members offer express services. Here is the link to our members and their contact points