Chain of Custody

Become familiar with…Chain of Custody!

Before you click on any delivery services on the Web…there is one very important term you need to become familiar with…Chain of Custody!

What is “The Chain of Custody” and why it is so critical to the success of any delivery service
The “chain of custody” is simply the number of people and organizations that will handle or touch your package or parcel from the time it leaves your hands, until its final destination. And as you can imagine, the smaller the “chain of custody” the less likely you’ll experience a problem with your delivery.

Example: The “chain of custody” for a national delivery company like Fed Ex looks something like this:

Pick-up driver—picks up your package or envelope
The handler or manager who inspects the packages at the local hub
Part-time worker that unloads the truck
Worker that sorts packages
Worker that puts package on a bigger truck
Driver who takes packages to the airport
Person puts package on plane–plane then flies to Memphis
Worker takes package off of plane
Driver takes package to Memphis hub
Worker unloads package
Worker sorts packages
Worker loads package onto correct truck
Driver takes package to airport
Worker places package on plane
Worker takes package off of plane when it lands at its destination
Driver takes package to local hub
Worker takes package off of truck
Sorter puts package in proper area
Worker loads package onto Fed Ex truck
Driver takes package to your door
Total chain of custody: 20 …don’t you wonder how any packages get to their destinations, intact and on time?

What is the “chain of custody” for a local delivery company like Mercury Delivery Services?

1. Pickup driver picks up package at your company
2. Same driver and same truck delivers package to final destination.
3. That’s it—Done!

Total chain of custody: 2
Which of these two scenarios do you think you’d prefer – how about if we told you that in most cases the second scenario is less expensive, especially for local same day delivery?
What the big national and international shippers don’t necessarily want you to know …
They don’t like 3 things

Weight
Size
Multiple packages to one location

When any of these happens … it can get real expensive for your business!
Things to consider when choosing a Delivery Service

Do you understand all costs?
Are there hidden costs, like fuel surcharges, vehicle charges, unloading charges, weight charges etc?
The final cost can often times be 30-40% higher than the original base price you were quoted!