There are many benefits of using a freight forwarder that an international shipper can take advantage of. That said, if you’ve never shipped goods internationally, the services that freight forwarders provide might be unknown to you. Fortunately, having another person help you with the transportation of your goods will relieve much of the burden of shipping.
According to the International Freight Logistics Network (IFLN), freight forwarders are an integral part of the supply chain. Benefits of using a freight forwarder include:
Some forwarding services provide additional value-added services.
We’ll go over the benefits of using a freight forwarder and how you can find one to help you.
The primary purpose of a freight forwarder is to make life easier for international shippers. Forwarders do this by acting as intermediaries between the shipper and the carrier who transports the shipper’s goods. Handling the transportation aspects of importing and exporting on your own can be challenging.
Freight forwarders remove these challenges with their knowledge and expertise. By delegating the transportation duties to a freight forwarder, shippers can worry about other responsibilities that they need to take care of.
While handing off responsibilities of transportation to a professional freight forwarder is a great benefit in its own right, it’s far from the only one that you’ll have access to. There are many other benefits of using a freight forwarder you can reap.
One of the benefits of using a freight forwarder is that they’re great at negotiating a rate with a carrier that’s beneficial for you.
There are a few different reasons that forwarders have this advantage:
Freight forwarders are moving your freight along with the freight of numerous other customers. Therefore, they have the ability to negotiate rates for their customers. The experience and history of working with carriers go a long way for forwarders as well.
Since they’ve been working with the same carriers for prolonged periods, freight forwarding companies can get a more affordable rate. This helps them attract more customers. Lastly, different shipping routes can vary in price. By having multiple routes to choose from, a forwarder can pick the cheapest and most affordable one for your freight to travel.
The ability that freight forwarders have to negotiate cheaper rates is one of the best benefits of using a freight forwarder. An international shipment of goods will cost you money and require you to follow any regulations applicable to your freight. By receiving a rate cheaper than what you could get on your own, you’ll have more money left over by the time the shipping process is complete.
We’ve already established that freight forwarders form strong connections with the carrier they work with to transport your freight. What makes a freight forwarder more advantageous than this is the fact that they share these connections with other carriers as well.
Forwarders have connections with multiple carriers that provide the following types of shipping:
Freight forwarders work alongside multiple carriers that provide each of these logistics services based on the needs of your freight. Working with multiple carriers also gives forwarders other options if the one they’re negotiating with can’t accommodate your needs.
Find out more by checking out the advantages of air freight.
Freight forwarders understand that customers like to track their freight. That’s why they provide their customers with accurate and timely tracking services. Forwarders provide this service by using numerous tracking systems. In some cases, they can even contact the carrier directly for an update on the shipment.
Another benefit of using a freight forwarder is that they serve as the single point of contact. If you were handling the transportation aspect of an international shipment, all communication would be your responsibility.
Some of the following parties would need frequent contact:
Keeping in contact with multiple people throughout the shipping process is a lot of work and it’s difficult to maintain. Freight forwarders keep in contact with all personnel involved in moving your goods from the time your freight leaves the port of origin, to when it arrives at the final destination.
This saves you the time you would have otherwise spent keeping track of multiple points of contact.
Read our article on the documents required for freight forwarding before using this service.
Freight forwarders can deliver on all of the benefits that we discussed above. That said, they can only provide you with these great benefits if they’re reliable. The type of services freight forwarders provide might be the same, but the quality in which they are delivered can vary. Therefore, you must know what to look for when searching for one.
One of the most important factors to consider when searching for a freight forwarder is their experience. This is particularly important when you consider hiring an independent freight forwarder as opposed to one who works for a freight forwarding company.
Some good indicators of an experienced freight forwarder are:
Since independent freight forwarders don’t typically have the same amount of resources as a freight forwarding company, they must rely on experience and knowledge.
The reputation that an independent freight forwarder or freight forwarding company is also good to look at. There are a few different ways you can determine if the forwarder you’re considering is reliable and trustworthy.
Good indicators include:
Hearing positive or negative reviews from international shippers that have used the services of the forwarder you’re looking into is one way to gauge the reputation of a forwarder. That said, people are much more likely to give their opinions about a service if the service was bad. That means that you should carefully weigh the intent of a review.
A better way to review the reputation of a forwarder is to determine if they’re a member of the World Cargo Alliance (WCA). The WCA is a legitimate organization made up of independent freight forwarders. Forwarders have to meet strict WCA criteria to obtain membership in the organization.
E-brochures from the freight forwarder you might want to hire will provide useful information as well. In these brochures, freight forwarders typically reveal their services and qualifications. There will likely be a phone number in the brochure as well. Call the forwarder using this number and double-check the claims they’ve made in the brochure.
There are many points throughout the transportation of an international shipment that can cause your freight to sustain damage, regardless of which form of transportation you use. In the case of ocean shipments, there is the possibility that the cargo container your freight is being transported in could fall off the ship and into the ocean.
The table below displays how many cargo containers have suffered this fate.
| Year | Amount of Containers That Went Overboard |
| 2017 | 450 |
| 2018 | 1700 |
| 2019 | 450 |
| 2020 | 3,500 |
| 2021 | 1,000 |
Having freight damaged or losing freight outright will be a disaster for you financially. That’s why you should make sure your freight forwarder offers shipping insurance to protect your investment. Many freight forwarders have different insurance plans to choose from. Be sure to review what these plans are or discuss insurance plans with your forwarder directly.
Another important factor to consider when reviewing potential freight forwarders is their pricing structure, specifically, how transparent it is. The last thing you want is to be told by a forwarder that their services will charge a certain amount, only to find out that the services were more expensive when you receive your receipt.
Make sure that the freight forwarder you pick is transparent about how they conduct pricing for their services. If you can’t find any information about it on their site, consider emailing or calling them about the topic.
Want to know how a freight forwarder differs from a freight broker or an NVOCC? Check out our articles to learn more!
At Freight Forwarding Services USA, we have a team of professionals that can help move your international shipment of freight. With our team of experienced forwarders and our connections with carriers throughout the supply chain, we can offer to you the best shipping services for you.
When you choose USA Freight Forwarding Services, you’ll have access to the following:
Ocean freight shipping is a great option when you have a bulk load of goods you need to get moved. International air, on the other hand, is great because of how fast your goods will get to the U.S. or another country.
We also offer consulting sessions with our experienced forwarders. Our forwarders can answer any questions you have regarding international shipping during one of these sessions. Call us at (866) 941-8081 to find out how you can schedule a consulting session or experience the benefits of using a freight forwarder by having us organize your international shipment.
