Did you know that up to 30% of freight invoices contain errors? For companies already juggling rising fuel prices, supply chain disruptions, and shifting trade policies, those mistakes can quietly drain thousands—or even millions—from the bottom line.
You work hard to keep operations running smoothly, shipments on schedule, and customers satisfied. But despite keeping meticulous track of every shipment, things don’t always feel under control. Freight costs keep climbing, and more and more, it’s hard to see where the money is really going.
That’s where freight audit services come in. By reviewing every invoice line by line, freight audits uncover hidden overcharges, duplicate fees, and unapplied discounts. The result? Immediate cost recovery of 8–10% in the first year for many organizations, plus long-term insights that make logistics, finance, and reporting more predictable.
If you think freight costs are “just part of doing business,” it’s time to rethink. Freight audits don’t just save you money, they give your team the clarity and control to make smarter decisions across the supply chain.
The Importance of Freight Audits
What is the purpose of a freight audit?
Freight audits put your carrier invoices under a microscope and double-check them against contracts and shipping details. Through a freight audit, you can catch issues such as incorrect shipping rates, shipment weight classification, and other hidden costs or fees that affect both operations and financial accuracy.
How do freight audits give you money back?
By identifying and correcting these errors, you can get money back from your carriers. You’ll save on freight costs and keep more money to yourself—money that you can put toward other parts of your business. Instead of losing dollars, they go back into your bottom line and help strengthen your reporting, forecasting, and cash flow.
We help you find the things you’ve missed quickly and accurately, because time and accuracy both matter. When companies start auditing their freight, they can see cost recoveries of as much as 8–10% in their first year.
What else can freight audits do for your logistics?
Of course, freight audits aren’t always about money. Auditing your freight is about getting the most out of your supply chain and the data behind it. In addition to catching billing and charging errors, freight auditing also gives you insight into shipping and payment trends that you can use to improve performance and decision-making.
How do regular freight audits lower your logistics costs?
- Catches overpayments from duplicate charges, incorrect freight classification, and unapplied discounts
- Recovers funds from your carriers and puts your budget back into your pockets
- Verifies that your carriers are adhering to your agreed-upon terms, such as rates and service level agreements
- Shows you trends such as increases in freight spend, carrier performance, and invoice accuracy
How else can freight audits help you improve your logistics?
- Negotiate better carrier contracts
- Find more cost-effective shipping routes
- Build better forecasts of future freight costs
- Minimize legal and financial risks
- Make disputes easier to resolve and faster
When you’re responsible for keeping operations, budgets, and relationships running smoothly, you need to see the big picture to keep things on track. Freight audits paint that picture in stunning detail.
Freight Audit Services vs. Doing It Yourself
Why should you seek out freight audit services when you can audit your own freight?
For many mid-size companies, freight audits are handled in-house by their logistics or finance teams. But this isn’t always the best option. Freight auditing, like any other logistics or financial operation, takes time to do, and the time your internal team spends auditing every invoice is time they can’t spend on other critical work. Many organizations end up losing money because their internal teams simply don’t have the capacity to catch everything.
Can your TMS catch all of your freight billing issues?
Even the best enterprise Transport Management System (TMS) platforms can’t always catch every hidden freight invoicing, billing, or payment error that could be costing you money and reducing visibility across departments. That means even your in-house team might be missing out on opportunities to recover funds or uncover trends in your shipping and financial data.
On top of that, freight auditing is a skill like any other, and when you hire a third-party service to do your freight audits, you’re hiring people who specialize in that specific area in a way general logistics or accounting teams might not.
What are the downsides of doing freight audits yourself?
- Takes time to do
- Uses up your team’s capacity
- Misses details that dedicated freight audit experts can catch
What are the advantages of third-party freight audit professionals?
- Avoids the higher cost overhead of hiring and training an in-house audit team
- Takes advantage of advanced audit tools and proven processes
- Redirects your internal resources toward higher-value work
Professionals like the team at TI Freight Audit can take the time to go through your invoices line by line, catch errors your team might miss on their own, and give you clearer visibility into both your freight operations and overall financial performance.
A Guide to the Freight Audit Process
The freight audit process can be lengthy and intensive. Logistics and finance teams have more invoices to track and reconcile than ever before, even for small and mid-size companies. That’s why so many businesses end up losing money to overpayments and missed discrepancies.
Third-party freight audit services are better equipped to handle today’s constant stream of freight invoices, without missing a cent or slowing down your operations. Here’s a condensed look at our process to show how a dedicated audit partner can bring accuracy, visibility, and efficiency to your freight management.
Twelve Steps to a Successful Freight Audit Process
- Gather and organize invoices using automated invoice collection technology
- Collect freight data from your TMS, ERP, and other management platforms
- Perform a pre-audit data cleansing to make the audit process faster and more accurate
- Use advanced software tools to verify each invoice for compliance and financial accuracy
- Manage any discrepancies or anomalies uncovered during review
- Automatically update financial records so you can see what’s been found in real time
- Generate detailed reports on freight costs, savings opportunities, and performance trends
- Conduct compliance checks against your industry’s specific standards
- Process incoming invoices promptly and accurately
- Make payments to carriers on time
- Deliver audit results, reports, and analytics through a secure client portal
- Offer a post-audit consultation to help you optimize performance and planning
Are freight audit processes really 100% automated?
You can’t automate everything and expect your audits to stay accurate. There has to be a human freight audit expert at the wheel. Someone who can see what automation can’t. Anyone who says their audits are fully automated isn’t actually auditing.
TI Freight Audit: Trusted by Businesses Since 1975
After half a century of helping small, midsize, and enterprise organizations gain control over their freight costs, we can say with confidence that the value of a freight audit can’t be overstated.
Every week without one is money slipping through the cracks. The sooner you act, the sooner you stop overpaying and start putting those savings back into your business.
Since 1975, we’ve helped companies—from manufacturers and retailers to Fortune 100 corporations—save millions of dollars each year that were tied up in billing, shipping, and payment errors. In total, we’ve protected billions in transportation spend and uncovered insights that make logistics and financial planning more precise.
Every week without a freight audit costs you more. Don’t wait to fix what you can’t see.
Stop overpaying today! Schedule a Demo
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is a freight audit?
A freight audit involves examining carrier invoices in detail to identify issues such as incorrect shipping rates, weight classification errors, and hidden costs or fees. It ensures that every charge aligns with your contracts, shipments, and delivery data.
How much money can I save with freight audit services?
By identifying and correcting invoice errors, companies often recover 8–10% in freight costs during their first year of auditing. Those savings can improve cash flow and free up budget for other priorities.
Can’t I just use my existing Transportation Management System (TMS) for freight audits?
While TMS platforms are excellent for managing freight movement, they’re not designed to verify every charge. Specialized freight auditing services combine advanced tools with expert oversight to catch errors and exceptions that systems alone can’t detect.
Why should I use a third-party freight audit service instead of doing it in-house?
Third-party services cost less than hiring and training an internal team, while providing the focused expertise and audit technology that in-house resources often lack. They also allow your logistics and finance teams to stay focused on higher-value work.
Is the freight audit process completely automated?
No. While automation speeds up data collection and validation, human freight audit experts still play a crucial role in spotting patterns and exceptions that automated systems can miss.
What are the potential downsides of conducting freight audits internally?
Internal audits take up valuable time and capacity. When teams are stretched thin, it’s easy to overlook discrepancies or miss opportunities for cost recovery and data insights.
How do freight audits help beyond recovering funds?
Freight audits don’t just uncover billing errors—they also provide visibility into logistics trends, carrier performance, and total freight costs. These insights can help you negotiate stronger contracts, improve forecasting, and make better financial decisions.
How quickly should a business start using freight audit services?
The sooner you start, the sooner you stop losing money to hidden errors. Each week without an audit is another week where small inaccuracies can add up.
Still have questions? Let’s talk!