FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What does it cost?
A. We employ a highly competitive gain-share pricing model with discount tiers for higher volume shippers. Services are billed monthly for savings recovered during the prior month. All credits are itemized in your carrier bill, and in our weekly reporting. Gain-share pricing guarantees all our services increase your profits. We offer monthly or per-transaction billing as well - but customers typically opt for gain-share. Already auditing? Give us an opportunity to win your business with a better rate on a more comprehensive service offering.
Q. What are the terms?
A. Satisfaction-based. No minimum service term. We enjoy very low attrition, but if you're ever dissatisfied, let us know. We'll fix it, or you can discontinue the service immediately -- your choice.
Q. How does rate negotiation work?
A. That's our secret sauce to a dramatic reduction in transport spend. Give us a call and we'll walk you through the process.
Q. What is the 30-day trial?
A. We're the ones on trial. Give us a month to prove ourselves. You'll receive the gain-share invoice at the end of the period, and you'll know if we can make a difference for your enterprise. If we do, you continue. If not, you walk. Our revenues are based on your savings, so if you don't like it, we don't either.
Q. Where do you operate?
A. Everywhere. Logistics management is necessarily a global enterprise. Our core auditing work is performed at several offices in the US and South Africa, but we work with companies domiciled anywhere. We consolidate data streams coming from different carriers on different countries in different currencies, to a central server bank where we audit the transportation invoices, settle claims with the carriers, and provide the customer with a single source for all relevant logistics information. We add consulting and cost-cutting services and move toward a full transportation spend management solution. Allow us to conduct a free preliminary assessment of your logistics auditing needs, or initiate our parcel audit, and we'll be better able to recommend a comprehensive solution.
Q. How do I start?
A. With the Parcel Audit. Implementation is simple and free. Within weeks you'll see real savings on your bill, and have a comprehensive analysis to identify further savings opportunities.
Q. I use a fulfillment service and never touch a parcel. Can I still audit with Direct-Recovery?
A. Yes. We need your authorization, and access to the electronic invoices from the carrier. We'll audit any shipment processed on that account number.
Q. We're a fulfillment service. How do we use Direct-Recovery?
A. Fulfillment houses ship on their own accounts, or on customers'. We'll audit both. You can use our reporting interface as an extra service for your customers, and a valuable (and free) tool for you to analyze for operational cost savings.
Q. Which carriers do you audit?
A. Any that have electronic billing, which includes all of the major parcel, truckload, LTL, ocean, rail companies -- FedEx, UPS, DHL, EMS, TNT, Eastern Connection, Blue Dart, US Cargo, etc. Site copy references UPS and FedEx as the industry gorillas, but if you ship with a carrier that invoices electronically, they're probably on the list. In fact, we prefer international shippers and regional carriers as the failure rate tends to be higher.
Q. Is there a minimum and maximum shipping volume?
A. Parcel auditing has historically been reserved for higher volume shippers. We introduced a scalable technology to profitably audit lower volumes as well. We target any company shipping at least $50k/year with with no maximum volume. As shipping spend increases, the breadth of applicable services also increases. Start with the parcel audit and reporting. Once we map your shipping profile, we can intelligently steer you toward maximum benefits with additional services.
Q. Who are your customers?
A. We serve a growing customer base ranging from well known corporate customers like Bosch, Prudential, Volvo to high-volume single location catalog shippers like Honda Direct and Celebrate Express. References available upon request.
Q. The Parcel Audit is split between Service and Invoice audits. What's the difference?
A. The Service Audit verifies on time delivery, and secures a refund or credit when the carrier misses it's performance commitment. It is also called a GSR (guaranteed service refund) audit. The Invoice Audit verifies accurate billing by analyzing every charge according to the carrier's tariff and the customer's service contract. Over time, the service and invoice audits generally return approximately the same savings. The Custom Solutions and Business Intelligence deliver additional savings not factored into the service or invoice audits.
Q. How does the guaranteed service refund work?
A. UPS® and FedEx® services are guaranteed to be delivered on time. If a package is delivered late, the cost of shipping is refunded, but the customer must first file a refund claim with the carrier. To avoid this hassle, most shippers overpay their UPS® or FedEx® bill rather than pay the hassle to process the service failure refunds internally. DRS avoids payment of failed deliveries by verifying on time delivery. When the service promise of the carrier isn't met, we make sure your full shipping expense is refunded to your UPS® or FedEx® account.
Q. How big is Direct-Recovery?
A. Founded in 2000, with offices in San Francisco, Colorado, Atlanta, and Cape Town, South Africa – we have about 20 dedicated professionals committed to serving our clients.
Q. What can Direct-Recovery do for our company?
A. Start with our complementary service review for an evaluation. If we're a fit, you'll start with a parcel audit and build from there, adding services we know will add value to your company. Historic savings range considerably from 0% to 20%+, so we hesitate to make performance claims before we do the work. Because services are billed on gain-share model, all our work improves your profitability.
Q. Can I buy software to perform our own audit in-house?
A. Yes, and no. There are software programs available to identify 'egregiously' late shipments, and output reports of tracking numbers of late deliveries for shippers to submit to their carriers as guaranteed service refund claims. That's the low-hanging fruit. Our audit engine is 10+ years and countless thousands of hours in the making. It requires constant tuning to track the changes in carrier tariffs. That's how we indentify identify the most difficult to find billing error, which we then contest directly with the carrier. That contest is a learned art in itself. Should a customer leave Direct-Recovery to bring the audit work in-house, they typically find the effort burdensome, and half as effective as working with us. Factor in the cost of in-house labor and the effort's a net loss in comparison. Need more proof? Ask for a complementary review of your current audit protocol - we'll audit what you've already audited so you can see if there's a difference.
Q. What about account coding?
A. We offer account coding services with customized accounting file uploads. Under your direction, our logic parses relevant information from over 80 fields/shipment to deliver consistent and accurate coding results.
