Most companies try to cut freight spend by asking for lower rates. That helps, but it skips the bigger question: where is the money actually going?
An audit-first approach answers that before anything changes. It shows which costs come from the rate itself and which come from how freight is routed, built, billed, and recovered. For a scaling business, that second group is often where the biggest gaps hide.
Start with the data you already have
You don’t need a TMS to run a useful audit. Pull three months of shipment history (six to twelve if you’re seasonal) from carrier invoices, your ERP, or spreadsheets. Capture:
- Origin and destination ZIPs, ship dates, and carrier
- Weight, pallet count, dimensions, and freight class
- Billed linehaul, fuel surcharge, and each accessorial
- Any claims filed, and what was recovered
Then work through the five checks below.
Check 1: Is your base rate still competitive?
Compare what you pay per lane against what the market would bid for your actual freight profile today. Red flags: no RFP in two or more years, rates set when volume was lower, or pricing that was never modeled against hundredweight breaks.
What good looks like: lane-level contract pricing built from real shipment history. TLI’s structured RFP process typically finds 8–15% in base rate savings over 4–6 weeks, and nothing changes until you approve it.
Check 2: Is freight actually following the routing guide?
For every shipment, ask: did it move on the carrier and rate the routing guide called for? Calculate the percentage that didn’t, and what the difference cost. Look at inbound vendor freight separately; it’s often the worst offender.
What good looks like: a dynamic routing guide inside your TMS, plus someone accountable for exceptions. TLI’s exceptions reporting flags each shipment where the least-cost provider wasn’t selected, so leaks become a conversation, not a mystery. Low compliance means even a great RFP won’t hold.
Check 3: Are you paying for shipments you could have combined?
Group shipments by origin, destination region, and ship date. Count how often two or more LTL shipments went to the same area within a day or two. Each of those is a consolidation candidate: one larger move instead of several minimum charges.
What good looks like: consolidation modeled during the RFP and enforced in daily execution, with volume LTL, partial, or multi-stop truckload used where the math works.
Check 4: Do your invoices match your contracts?
Re-rate a sample of paid invoices against your contracts. Look for:
- Tariff rates billed instead of contract rates
- Fuel surcharge at the wrong percentage or on the wrong base
- Duplicate bills under different invoice numbers
- Unapproved liftgate, residential, or detention charges
- Reclasses and reweighs without documentation
If you find errors, assume the rate holds across your whole spend. TLI’s data shows 2–3% of freight invoices carry overcharges; on $2M in spend, industry error rates of 3–8% equal $60,000–$160,000 a year.
What good looks like: pre-payment freight bill audit on every invoice. When Tioga Pipe moved to TLI’s LTL audit program, it recovered 3.5% of total LTL spend.
Check 5: How much loss and damage are you writing off?
Total the value of damaged, short, and lost shipments over the period. Then compare it to what was filed and what was actually paid. The gap is usually large: deadlines get missed, documentation is incomplete, and claims filed under the wrong type get denied.
What good looks like: every claim filed correctly and on time, tracked to resolution, and reported by carrier. TLI managed 914 claims and recovered over $1.2M for shippers in 2025.
Turn findings into a scorecard
Use this table to summarize your audit. Each row is a cost driver; fill in your own numbers.
| COST DRIVER | WHAT TO MEASURE | WARNING SIGN | BENCHMARK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base rate | Cost per lane vs. current market | No RFP in 2+ years | 8–15% base rate savings |
| Routing guide compliance | % of shipments on the assigned carrier and rate | Off-guide bookings, unmanaged vendor inbound | Exceptions flagged on every load |
| Consolidation | Same-region LTL shipments within 1–2 days | Multiple minimum charges to one area | Modeled in RFP, enforced daily |
| Freight bill accuracy | Overcharges as % of invoices | Accessorials and reclasses paid without review | 2–3% of spend recovered |
| Claims recovery | $ recovered vs. $ lost | Claims unfiled or denied | ~1% of spend; $1.2M+ in 2025 |
Why discipline beats a one-time fix
Why discipline beats a one-time fix
An audit shows you the gaps. Closing them takes ongoing accountability, and that’s where most programs fall apart. Teams bid rates once, then let routing slip, overlook invoice errors, and miss claim deadlines.
A disciplined freight management partner owns every row of that scorecard, every week. With TLI, that means:
- One team, one incentive. A dedicated account team whose goal is lowering your total cost, not earning margin per load.
- One system. ViewPoint TMS, included at no license fee, holds your contracts, routing guides, invoices, and claims, with ERP connections to SAP, Oracle, and NetSuite.
- Your carriers first. Programs are built around your existing carrier relationships, adding TLI’s 30,000+ vetted carriers only where there are gaps.
- Proof every quarter. Scorecards, audit recoveries, and claims results reviewed in quarterly business reviews.
- Fast to stand up. Typically 5–6 weeks from sharing your shipment data to a live program.
For a $1.5M program, TLI’s published example puts combined savings from RFP, audit, and claims at $165K–$285K a year (11–19%). Routing compliance and consolidation are what keep those savings from leaking back.
Start with your own shipping cost audit
TLI will run the first pass with you. Request a free freight assessment and we’ll review your lanes, rates, and invoices, then show you exactly where your hidden costs sit. No obligation, and nothing changes until you say go.
