Bureau Proposes 6.1% Hike In LTL General Tariff Rates
img src="/sites/default/files/images/articles/printeditiontag_new.gif" width=120 align=right>Rate bureau SMC3 recommended a 6.1% increase in general tariff rates for its 125 less-than-truckload carrier members to take effect June 7, an action that could presage a widespread request by LTL carriers of their shipper customers.
Last year the Atlanta-based bureau’s general rate committee suggested an increase of the identical amount, but with an Aug. 1 effective date. Executives with two major LTL carriers told Transport Topics they would soon be notifying their customers of rate increases to cover the rising costs of labor, fuel, highway tractors, tolls, insurance and security.
General tariffs are charged to small or occasional shippers that usually make up about 50% of a carrier’s customer base. The price schedule also serves as a benchmark for negotiations with larger contract customers that — even with the discounts they receive — usually generate more than half a company’s revenue.
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