Staff Reporter
FedEx Freight Delays Enforcement of NMFC Updates for 150 Days

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FedEx Freight of National Motor Freight Classification updates for 150 days until Dec. 1, the less-than-truckload unit of FedEx Corp. said.
“FedEx Freight will begin enforcing the NMFC changes on Dec. 1, 2025. We have delayed enforcement to help our customers adapt and ensure a smooth transition to the new, streamlined NMFC classes,” the company said in a statement to Transport Topics when asked to explain the decision.
“Customers who want to begin using the new classes now are welcome and encouraged to do so; there is no requirement to wait until Dec. 1,” it added.
The National Motor Freight Traffic Association introduced the changes to the NMFC on July 19. NMFC is a standardized format of comparing shipments moving as LTL freight between states or internationally.
FedEx Freight ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics list of the largest LTL carriers in North America. FedEx Corp. ranks No. 2 on TT’s Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America.
Each load’s NMFC freight class helps determine the shipping cost, based on how difficult it is to transport.
NMFTA’s changes are intended to reflect more closely the actual cost of shipping freight by shifting the LTL segment of the freight market from commodity-based to density-based classifications.
The current 11-tier system was replaced by a revised 13-subprovision (subs) density scale. The changes reclassify more than 2,000 NMFC items.
Clete Cordero, NMFTA chairman and vice president of pricing and traffic for Southeastern Freight Lines, added: “As a carrier, we see firsthand how misclassifications and outdated interpretations can create inefficiencies for everyone involved.” Southeastern ranks No. 24 on the for-hire TT100 and No. 10 among LTL carriers.
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The most efficient LTL carriers post lower operating ratios. OR provides insight on how well a company is balancing its costs and revenue generation. The lower the ratio, the better a company’s performance.
NMFTA also introduced a revamped digital classification platform, , to aid industry participants’ transition.
“By making it simpler, and more uniform, across the board for so many of these items, it allows people to come into the industry that are maybe newer to it, and be able to easily pick up the classification system. Because what this is all about is getting the right information onto the bill of ladings — the shipping documentation — so that makes the process that much easier throughout the entire logistics process,” Keith Peterson, NMFTA director of operations, said during a June 19 webinar.
“The standard 11 subs, that were in existence before, and have been in existence for years, have remained unchanged. There is no change there. It just broke out two more subs, with two lower classes. So, of the thousands of products that have been moving under the 11-step density table already, and currently, there will basically be no change unless it is a reduction in freight class for those customers,” added Lloyd Rawson, director of W&R, Saia LTL Freight.
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Saia, which hosted the webinar, ranks No. 7 among LTL carriers and No. 17 on the for-hire TT100.
Top-ranked FedEx Freight said it was delaying enforcement to ensure customers had ample time to fully adopt processes and pricing for the new classifications.
Following the changes, FedEx Freight said shippers can expect to see:
- Standardized density scales for LTL freight with no handling, stowability and liability issues
- Unique identifiers for commodities with special handling, stowability and liability needs
- Condensed and modernized commodity listings
The updates have been characterized by freight market watchers as the biggest change in the LTL sector since deregulation of the entire trucking industry in 1980.
The Freight Classification Development Council developed the standards, holding three public meetings in 2024 to discuss the changes as well as seeking market feedback.