What kind of fees does NTFB assess?

There are two types of fee codes you will generally see on invoices. One is a restock fee, and the other is a generic non-standard service convenience fee. Please be advised that these fees are not the same as any assessed cost for products, such as kitted produce, which are chargeable for labor and supply costs.

 

Restock Fees

Restock fees are assessed whenever product is rejected or returned by agencies due to ordering in error (including over-ordering), general product rejection (including being dissatisfied with an item that has been deemed consumable), or failing to pick up an order at our warehouse as previously scheduled. Within the restock fee category, there are two specific line items you may see on an invoice - "RESTOCK - FLAT FEE" or "RESTOCK FEE - $.08/LB". If the total weight of the returned product is less than 3,125 pounds, you will see the flat fee of $250; if the weight is greater than 3,125 pounds, you will see the $0.08 per pound fee. If there is no valid reason why the fee should not be applied, you will usually receive an invoice for the fee from the agency service desk within 1-2 business days.

 

Restock fees may be waived in certain circumstances, such as spoiled/damaged product or late delivery. However, the decision to waive a fee that is deemed as usually applicable is not made lightly and requires management approval.

 

Non-Standard Service Convenience Fee

This group of fees covers quite a lot of different things. Depending on what the fee is for, it could be applied manually or automatically by our system. Certain situations require fees be applied manually because there is a level of nuance that our inventory system is not able to successfully navigate on its own. Examples of situations with fees that are applied manually are:

• Expediting an order after processing has started
• Cancelling an order after processing has started
• Modifying an order after processing has started
• Special delivery services that have not been approved in advance or are a significant change from the norm for your agency (review your distribution services agreement addendum for full details)

 

Whenever a fee is applied manually, you will either see it as a line item that was added on the existing order or receive a separate invoice from the agency service desk within 1-2 business days. If a new invoice is created, the agency service desk representative who creates the invoice will usually refer to the specific order the fee is for on a separate line of the invoice; this makes it easier to reference back and forth between the two.

 

If a fee is added automatically by our system, it will generally appear at the top of the item list (rather than the bottom, as is usual for manually added fees). These fees are usually for a pre-arranged delivery service, such as direct delivery in a designated flex hub/group delivery location. These fees are added per order, not per delivery, by our system; if you have multiple orders as part of the same delivery, the system may not catch this and will require manual correction.

 

How do I dispute a fee that I've been charged?

If you have been invoiced for a fee, regardless of whether it is a restock fee or a non-standard service convenience fee, you have the ability to dispute it if you legitimately believe it was applied in error. However, decisions to waive fees that would usually be applicable require management review and approval. These are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and can sometimes take a few days to fully review. To dispute a fee that you've been invoiced, please submit a ticket and be sure to include as much detail and supporting evidence as you can provide. This will help us better assess whether the fee should be waived or should stand. Please be advised that once management review of a fee dispute has been completed, that decision will be final.