Manifests are a key part of shipping documentation and the process of booking your orders (or manifesting) is a key part of making sure you use Shippit successfully.
What is a manifest?
A manifest is a shipping summary that is made up of one or more shipping consignments. The manifest contains information that is used by the carrier to invoice you for freight services, and also to track the delivery of consignments. You may see the ultimate delivery zone or destination, as well as the delivery method displayed on your manifests depending on the carrier you choose to ship with.
How do carriers use manifests?
Drivers will often request (and we highly recommend) that you print a paper manifest to be signed and used as proof that the number of packages you have declared has been picked up by your carrier. As mentioned above, manifests are also used to invoice you.
Manifests are your carrier's most important source of truth.
How does Shippit submit my manifests?
We generate all manifests digitally and share a copy with the carrier when you book your orders using the Book Now button on the Ready to Ship screen. That means that your carrier should always receive your manifest if you are booking using our app, and if there is an error, we will stop the manifest and notify you with a warning on screen.
TL;DR?
- Manifests are used for billing purposes, and forgetting to book or manifest your consignments will result in fees from carriers
- Manifest data is used to track your parcels, so tracking updates may not appear in Shippit if your orders are not manifested
- Booking after your packages are picked up will result in your manifest being submitted later than your carrier's first scan, meaning that tracking updates may not appear in Shippit