MoveHQ Rating Logic

Owned by Steve Lassanske
Last updated: Jul 14, 2021
10 min read

400N Rating Logic

 

The purpose of this document is to provide an instructional guide as to how interstate pricing is calculated using the 400N tariff.  The reason for first doing this with the 400N is because it is the basis for which most interstate moving tariffs are based.  Understanding the pricing principals within this document will help employees at MoveHQ with debugging, testing, customer support and even development.  

 

Within the following pages of this document, you will find the tariff services listed along with their underlying calculations.  It is important to understand how this works, as generated paperwork and rating returns from the MoveHQ rating engine do not tell the complete story of how some of the figures come to be. 

For convenience and ease of use, these services are listed in sections that have been indexed below.

  • Introduction

  • Transportation

    • Lookup of Rates

    • Determining Linehaul

    • Fuel Surcharge

    • IRR Surcharge

    • Origin and Destination Transportation Charges (ATC’s)

  • Packing

    • Custom Packing / Unpacking 

    • CWT Packing / Unpacking

    • Crating

  • Valuation

  • Bulky Items

  • Accessorials

  • SIT (Storage In Transit)

    • Pickup or Delivery Charges

    • First Day Charges

    • Each Additional Day Charges

  • Discounting


Introduction

In order to calculate the tariff manually there are some key components and concepts that need to be understood.  These are referenced below and will be used throughout this document.  

  • Mileage - Most mileage in modern tariffs use the Rand McNally Mileage Guide number 19.  Mileage is used to look up specific rates or to determine CWT Miles.  MoveHQ will automatically determine the mileage based on this guide and it should be listed on any MoveHQ generated paperwork that contains interstate pricing.

  • Tariff Rate Sheet - This is the published excel or .CSV file we give to anyone who publishes a tariff with MoveHQ.  This file contains multiple tabs that list out the actual rates used in calculation.

  • Service Area Lookup Table - This is a lookup table that will let you know based on the origin and destination zip codes, what service area that zip code correlates to.  This is used for some rate lookups in the tariff rate sheet.

  • CWT - This is a per 100 pound calculation that is commonly used.  You can develop a CWT rate by taking the weight of the shipment, divide it by 100, then take that number and multiply it by the CWT rate supplied in the tariff.

  • CWT Miles - This is accomplished by taking the weight of the shipment, dividing it by 100, then multiplying it by the miles that area applied to the shipment.  This concept is used in determining the Shorthaul calculation.

  • Shipment Weight - This is used in multiple areas of the tariff to determine cost.  It can be used as a lookup for a flat rate or as a key component in any of the CWT calculations.

  • Discounts - Discounts can be applied as a percentage of the move costs.  Most everything within the tariff can have the discount applied to it except the valuation charges.

Transportation

To calculate transportation we first need some critical points of information that will allow you to look up the right rates that are to be used in the calculations.  

  • Weight

  • Mileage of the shipment

  • Origin Zip Code

  • Destination Zip Code

For our example we will use a weight of 4000lbs, moving from zip code 15221 to a destination zip code of 14580.  The mileage being used under this example is 288 mi.

Step1 - Look up what is needed

Look up the following values and write them down for both origin and destination. These values will not only be used to determine the transportation, but will be used in one form or another to look up or determine the rate for every service in the tariff. These lookup values are:

  • Service Areas

  • Service Schedules

  • LineHaul Factors

  • ATC Charges

Start by using the origin and destination zip codes to determine the service area.  You can do this via the “Zip Mapping” tab in the tariff.  Each Zip3 (the first 3 numbers in the zip or postal code) has a corresponding service area.

Example of locating origin service area where Column A represents the Service area and Column B represents the Zip3



Once you have the origin and destination service areas written down, move over to the “Service Areas” tab of the tariff.  This is where, for the origin and destination service area, you will find the corresponding rate schedule, Linehaul factors and ATC rates.  Look those up and write them down for use later.

Below are examples of what this should look like when you find it and when you write it down.

Service Areas Table Example

Example of documenting the Lookup

4000lbs, going 288mi with a 63% discount.

 

Origin Zip 15221 Destination Zip 14580

Origin Svc Area 676 Destination Svc Area 540

Origin Schedule 2 Destination Schedule 3

Origin LH Factor .94 Destination LH Factor 2.08

Origin ATC 9.29 Destination ATC 6.22

 

Step 2 - Determination of Linehaul

Linehaul is calculated by adding 3 to 4 things together depending on what your mileage is.  These include the Base Line Haul, Shorthaul if applicable, Origin Linehaul Factor, and Destination Linehaul Factor.  

Note: Shorthaul only applies if the mileage is less than 500 miles.

First is the Base Linehaul tariff rate for moving.  This can be found on the MoveHQ Tariff .CSV file we provide to our customers.  It is found under the “Tariff” tab.  The lookup is simple, just use the weight and mileage to determine the rate.  



For this example Base Linehaul is a flat rate of $4765.00

Next, you will need to determine what the shorthaul charge is because our mileage above is below 500mi.  If the mileage was greater than or equal to 500mi, then you would skip this step.  The table for this can be found on the “Shorthaul” tab of the MoveHQ Tariff. CSV file.  Shorhaul is determined by what is called the CWT Mile.  Formula is listed below.

Weight/100*miles= CWT Miles

So if our weight is 4000lbs, simply divide that by 100 then multiply 40 by the miles.

40*288 = 11520

The result is 11,520.  Now look in the tariff file under the tab “Shorthaul” to find out where you fall in the bracket.  That will determine your rate.  



For this example the Shorthaul Rate is $362.96

The next step is to calculate the Origin and Destination Linehaul Factors.  At this point you have already looked the CWT rate for this up and have written it down.  Now just calculate the origin and destination cost.  Please remember that a CWT rate is the Weight/100*Rate.

Origin LH Factor 4000/100*0.94 = $37.60

Destination LH Factor 4000/100*2.08 = 83.20

 

The final step is to add everything up to determine Linehaul


Base Linehaul + Shorthaul + Origin LH Factor + Destination LH Factor = Linehaul


4765.00 + 362.96 + 37.60 + 83.20 = $5,248.76


Step 3 - Calculation of Fuel and IRR  Surcharges

Van lines have it written into their tariff to allow for a fuel surcharge and IRR surcharge to be applied. Both fuel and IRR are based on a specific percentage of the linehaul which was calculated above in step 2.  

The fuel percentage can be found on the estimate form and should be used if manually calculating the total transportation cost.  The formula is listed below.

Linehaul * Fuel Percentage = Fuel Surcharge Cost 

So for this example at 4% fuel surcharge

5,248.76 * .04 = $209.95

 

Like fuel, the IRR (Insurance Related Revenue) Surcharge is set up in the tariff as a percentage of a shipment’s linehaul and can be found on the pricing documents we produce in MoveHQ.

Linehaul * IRR Percentage = IRR Surcharge Cost

So for this example at 4% IRR surcharge

5,248.76 * .04 = $209.95

 

Step 4 - Calculation of ATC’s (Origin and Destination Charges)



The origin and destination ATC’s are calculated as a CWT charge.  As stated above, a CWT charge is a per 100 pound calculation that is commonly used.  You can develop a CWT rate by taking the weight of the shipment, divide it by 100, then take that number and multiply it by the CWT rate supplied in the tariff.  This will need to be done for both Origin and Destination.



Based on our findings in Step 1 above, we know that the Origin ATC is $9.29 cwt and the Destination ATC is $6.22 cwt.  We also know that the weight is 4,000 lbs.



To calculate the Origin ATC



$9.29 * 40 = $371.60



To calculate the Destination ATC



$6.22 * 40 = $248.80



Step 5 - Calculation of Transportation Total



Now that we have finished the first 4 steps, we are ready to determine the total transportation charge.  The Transportation Total is the sum of the Linehaul, Fuel, IRR, Origin and Destination ATC charges.  Simply add them up to determine the Transportation.



Linehaul  $5,248.76

Fuel $209.95

IRR $209.95

Origin ATC $371.60

Destination ATC $248.80  

Transportation $6,289.06 



 

Packing

Packing services consist of Packing, Unpacking and Crating.  Packing and Unpacking can be done a couple of ways within the 400N rate structure.  The most common way that packing is determined is through what is called a “custom pack” where pricing is done on a per box basis; while another method called “full pack” uses a CWT formula for determining the packing price regardless of the number of boxes being used.  Another common scenario is when a moving company determines the Packing charges using the “full pack” method, and then determines the Unpacking charges using the “custom pack” method.  This hybrid where CWT for packing and Custom for unpacking is common due to the additional cost to the consumer associated with unpacking. 



Unpacking regardless of type “custom” or “full” is always done as a percentage of the packing.  It is calculated at 25% of packing for the rate schedule it takes place in.



Crating is used for special items, commonly items that are too heavy to be supported by cardboard but are also fragile. A good example of an item that would require crating is a marble top to a coffee table.  This type of item will crush the cardboard but still needs to be protected.  Building a wooden crate specifically for the dimensions of the marble is the best way to protect it and ensure it doesn’t break while in transit.  



Crating is calculated at a rate per cubic foot.  The tariff also states that there is a minimum so no individual crate can be smaller than 4 cubic feet.  Like the packing, uncrating is calculated at 25% of the crating cost for the rate schedule it takes place in.



Regardless of the packing type, or if it’s packing or unpacking, you will need to know both the Origin and Destination service schedules (please reference step 1 in the transportation section) to determine the packing and unpacking charges.



Origin Schedule 2 Destination Schedule 3

 

Calculation of Packing Charges

In order to calculate the packing charges we need to determine the type of packing we are going to calculate first.  As mentioned above there are two types, custom and full.  We will start with custom.  



In this scenario we have 3 - Dishpaks, 3 - 1.5 Cartons, and 3 - 4.5 Cartons.



We will start by going to the Packing tab in the .CSV tariff file and looking up the rate.  The page will have a table as shown below where we can look up the individual carton rate for the appropriate rate schedule.  Since packing is done at Origin, that is the rate schedule we will use.





Once we have identified the rate based on the schedule, for each of the boxes, we are ready to do our calculations.

Dishpaks  3 * $117.51 = $352.53

1.5 Cartons  3 * $27.85 = $83.55

4.5 Cartons 3 * $51.23 = $153.69

Pack Total $589.77



To calculate the full pack option you will need to look up the CWT rate  in the same table for the Origin packing schedule.





Once we have identified the rate based on the schedule, we are ready to perform the calculations.  Please keep in mind that this is a CWT rate which will require the weight of the shipment.  Based on this example the shipment weight is 4,000 lbs.



4,000lbs / 100 = 40 cwt

40 * $67.76 = $2,710.40



Calculation of Unpacking Charges

To calculate the custom unpacking we will need to look up the rates for packing in the rate table just as we did for pacing.  The rate schedule for unpacking is schedule 3.  Please remember that unpacking is calculated at 25% of the packing charges for the rate schedule it takes place in.



For the custom unpacking option we must first calculate the packing, then calculate the unpacking at the 25% rate.



Dishpaks  (3 * $128.09) = $384.27 * .25 = $96.07

1.5 Cartons  (3 * $30.67) = $92.01 * .25 =   $23.00

4.5 Cartons (3 * $56.57) = $169.71 * .25 =  $42.43

Unpack Total   $161.50



For the full unpack option we must first calculate the full pack then calculate the full unpack at 25% of the packing.



4,000lbs / 100 = 40 cwt

(40 * $74.21) = $2,968.40 * .25 = $742.10



Calculation of Crating Charges

To determine the crating cost, we must first determine the cubic foot of the crate.  This is done by using the formula below.



((L” + 4”) * (W” + 4”) * (H” + 4”) / 1728) = Cubic Foot, then round up.



For this calculation example we will want to crate a marble table top with actual dimensions of 55” x 55” x 1”.



((55” + 4”) * (55” + 4”) * (1” + 4”) / 1,728) = 11 cu ft



Now the cubic foot of the crate has been determined, we can look up the crate rate and calculate the price based on the origin rate schedule 2.  Please see the rate table and formula below.





$32.49 * 11 cu ft = $357.39



Calculation of Uncrating Charges

Similar to the unpacking, the uncrating charges are determined at 25% of the crating rate for the schedule that the uncrating will be performed in.  We know from the formula above that the cubic foot for the uncrating is 11 cu ft.   The formula is listed below.



$32.98 * 11 cu ft = $362.78  then take $362.78 * .25 = $90.70 for uncrating.

 

Valuation