Back Office Support ???????
- Thread starter Teflon
- Start date
greg334
Veteran Expediter
sucbadriver said; "8. I have never been held up for more than an hour at the boarder and then its because of a lazy driver on the first leg of the trip that didn’t clear the load and I had to walk it through"
OK I have trouble with this one. The other day I was asked to do this and to make sure it was clear. I told dispatch that the other driver is responsible to ensure that the load is clear, I will fax it as a courtisy and make sure that it is received but I am not going across the border, they are andthey need to make sure that everything is in order.
Am I lazy? NO, I am not responsible at all for customs clearence of things I will not bring through the border on my truck. I would think that the other driver is not doing their job by making sure things are done properly and following up.
OK I have trouble with this one. The other day I was asked to do this and to make sure it was clear. I told dispatch that the other driver is responsible to ensure that the load is clear, I will fax it as a courtisy and make sure that it is received but I am not going across the border, they are andthey need to make sure that everything is in order.
Am I lazy? NO, I am not responsible at all for customs clearence of things I will not bring through the border on my truck. I would think that the other driver is not doing their job by making sure things are done properly and following up.
I agree. He should definately knock on wood. Customs officers don't make their own rules, although their training is not always as current as it should be. The mt manifest thing is being phased in, it's not required at all crossings yet. Also, customs doesn't fax things to the broker. The paperwork is faxed to the broker. They process it and enter it into the computer where it is reviewed and accepted by customs.
It is the responsibility of the driver to make sure the invoice contains all the needed info. Shipper, consignee, description, country of origin, ect. The driver can't be responsible for the accuracy of all of that info. One of my customs snafus was when customs questioned the value of some proto-type parts. It was a 3 hour delay, certainly could have been worse. A driver should never show up at the border with an invoice that's missing value, country of origin, or other basic info. That's either a new driver that's been poorly trained, or someone that just didn't take 10 seconds to review the paperwork. It's also a good reason to have people in the office helping out. It's very common to find out that people who complain about things that happen at the border could have prevented the problems before they happened.
It is the responsibility of the driver to make sure the invoice contains all the needed info. Shipper, consignee, description, country of origin, ect. The driver can't be responsible for the accuracy of all of that info. One of my customs snafus was when customs questioned the value of some proto-type parts. It was a 3 hour delay, certainly could have been worse. A driver should never show up at the border with an invoice that's missing value, country of origin, or other basic info. That's either a new driver that's been poorly trained, or someone that just didn't take 10 seconds to review the paperwork. It's also a good reason to have people in the office helping out. It's very common to find out that people who complain about things that happen at the border could have prevented the problems before they happened.
If you get held at the border for 8 hours; there is something definitely wrong.
I'm not denying that it never happens; but I hope it would be rare!
I'm refering to coming to Canada with that statement.
Some Canadian carriers; not specifically expediters though; do have someone in the office who ensures all entries have been made and are accepted before the driver gets to the border. If there are issues the driver waits until they are sorted out.
I agree that the Sarnia - Port Huron crossing is better than the ferry for HazMat; unless you are local and know all the ropes.
>"I have never been held up for more than an hour at the
>boarder..."
>
>Find some wood. Knock on it. A lot.
>
>First time you're held up at the border, for like, 8 hours,
>because of something that was out of your control, you'll
>understand the frustrations that some people have.
I'm not denying that it never happens; but I hope it would be rare!
I'm refering to coming to Canada with that statement.
Some Canadian carriers; not specifically expediters though; do have someone in the office who ensures all entries have been made and are accepted before the driver gets to the border. If there are issues the driver waits until they are sorted out.
I agree that the Sarnia - Port Huron crossing is better than the ferry for HazMat; unless you are local and know all the ropes.
>"I have never been held up for more than an hour at the
>boarder..."
>
>Find some wood. Knock on it. A lot.
>
>First time you're held up at the border, for like, 8 hours,
>because of something that was out of your control, you'll
>understand the frustrations that some people have.
Greg, as for the first leg driver faxing paperwork and making sure everything was received, and then cleared...
The bottom line problem is, there are too many drivers who will not (or cannot) go to Canada, but they will gladly pick up a load going to Canada, not mess with the paperwork (cause it doesn't affect them) and then drive 400-500 miles and swap it out in Detroit, leaving the 2nd leg driver to have to mess with faxing the stuff from a truckstop or something, and then having to sit there and wait 2 hours or more for it all to clear, and then proceed the final 75 miles to the consignee.
Agreed that it's the driver crossing the border's butt on the line, so they must double check everything. But if the 1st leg driver is willing to take most of the miles and the money for the load, without having to deal with the hassles of crossing the border, the least he/she/it can do is deal with the hassles of doing the paperwork.
The sooner the paperwork is faxed the better, so it only makes sense to have it faxed from the shipper, especially since they are likely experienced with border-crossing shipments. Any problems that do come up will come up sooner, and can be handled sooner.
I picked up a second leg once in Detroit, and not only had none of the paperwork been faxed, there wasn't even a customs invoice. First leg driver, he didn't care, figured I'd deal with it. Turns out it was an electronic invoice that was to be sent by a 3rd party once they were notified by the broker that they had received all of the other paperwork by fax. I took the load at 8PM and that 3rd party's office hours were 7AM-6PM.
I sat there for 11 hours, paid $11 in fax and copy charges, $8 in phone charges, then sat 2 more hours waiting for it to clear, and got squat for detention. Then drove the 74 miles to the consignee so I could get my $60 or whatever it was the load paid.
Just as an example :7
The bottom line problem is, there are too many drivers who will not (or cannot) go to Canada, but they will gladly pick up a load going to Canada, not mess with the paperwork (cause it doesn't affect them) and then drive 400-500 miles and swap it out in Detroit, leaving the 2nd leg driver to have to mess with faxing the stuff from a truckstop or something, and then having to sit there and wait 2 hours or more for it all to clear, and then proceed the final 75 miles to the consignee.
Agreed that it's the driver crossing the border's butt on the line, so they must double check everything. But if the 1st leg driver is willing to take most of the miles and the money for the load, without having to deal with the hassles of crossing the border, the least he/she/it can do is deal with the hassles of doing the paperwork.
The sooner the paperwork is faxed the better, so it only makes sense to have it faxed from the shipper, especially since they are likely experienced with border-crossing shipments. Any problems that do come up will come up sooner, and can be handled sooner.
I picked up a second leg once in Detroit, and not only had none of the paperwork been faxed, there wasn't even a customs invoice. First leg driver, he didn't care, figured I'd deal with it. Turns out it was an electronic invoice that was to be sent by a 3rd party once they were notified by the broker that they had received all of the other paperwork by fax. I took the load at 8PM and that 3rd party's office hours were 7AM-6PM.
I sat there for 11 hours, paid $11 in fax and copy charges, $8 in phone charges, then sat 2 more hours waiting for it to clear, and got squat for detention. Then drove the 74 miles to the consignee so I could get my $60 or whatever it was the load paid.
Just as an example :7
greg334
Veteran Expediter
Well Turtle, I see your point and understand that a large number of drivers just don't care. I do and this is where I would at minimal make sure the paper work is in order simply because I would not want to have it happen to me, you know that do onto others thing. But that is me.
jaminjim
Veteran Expediter
Greg said:
"Am I lazy? NO, I am not responsible at all for customs clearence of things I will not bring through the border on my truck. I would think that the other driver is not doing their job by making sure things are done properly and following up."
This is why I won't take the second half of swith loads into Canada.
"Am I lazy? NO, I am not responsible at all for customs clearence of things I will not bring through the border on my truck. I would think that the other driver is not doing their job by making sure things are done properly and following up."
This is why I won't take the second half of swith loads into Canada.
iheartfaye
Expert Expediter
Lot of info being thrown back and forth and lots of chests pumped out letting everyone know how great their carrier is and how bad everyone elses is but you can always provide yourself with a win if you take some responsibility to ensure you have no problems.
I don't have border problems in or out, even with the new ACE because I don't wait till I get to the border to find out if my freight is cleared.
Phone the broker, or AdminServ, one hour after faxing. They will tell you whether your load is even in the pipeline yet. Ensure that the broker handles your customer. If it is the wrong broker, there is a book that all the brokers have listing who handles what customers. If you are polite, they will look it up for you.
If you have a delay at the Shipper or at the Border, send a qc message and your delivery time will be ammended.
Brian
Panther since 11/2004
I don't have border problems in or out, even with the new ACE because I don't wait till I get to the border to find out if my freight is cleared.
Phone the broker, or AdminServ, one hour after faxing. They will tell you whether your load is even in the pipeline yet. Ensure that the broker handles your customer. If it is the wrong broker, there is a book that all the brokers have listing who handles what customers. If you are polite, they will look it up for you.
If you have a delay at the Shipper or at the Border, send a qc message and your delivery time will be ammended.
Brian
Panther since 11/2004
pelicn
Veteran Expediter
We used the ACE system for the first time today....it took 3 hours to get the message that we were clear to cross. This is suppose to be easier? I hope that whatever database they are trying to get together goes quickly because filling out more sheets of information each time, and waiting that long is NOT easier.