On this page
A general guide to coordinating separate delivery providers without losing track of who owns each shipment.
Key takeaways
- Record the chosen carrier, handover and latest outcome against your original shipment reference.
- Compare route suitability, pickup arrangements, acceptance rules, returns and claims handling.
- A provider may mark a parcel returned before your hub has received it.
Keep one reference for each shipment
Record the chosen carrier, handover and latest outcome against your original shipment reference. Providers may use different words for the same event. Check what their statuses mean before relying on them to answer a customer.
Choose for the actual delivery
Compare route suitability, pickup arrangements, acceptance rules, returns and claims handling. The lowest headline rate does not describe the whole service. The sender needs an arrangement suited to the goods and the delivery expectations agreed with the customer.
Resolve conflicting records
A provider may mark a parcel returned before your hub has received it. Keep that difference open until the receiving evidence arrives or someone investigates it. Delivery proof, returns and any collected cash should all lead back to the original shipment.
Questions about this topic
Does Delv provide a multi-carrier booking platform?
This article does not claim that service. Delv Network describes the bulk handover and delivery work we advertise.
What is worth standardising first?
Start with shipment references, the meaning of each status and the person responsible when two records disagree.