Define both ends of the journey
List supplier addresses and confirm whether collection starts at their premises or at a designated warehouse. For several suppliers, identify each collection separately. Give the final delivery city and address, receiving hours, appointment requirements and access restrictions. Specify the agreed handover point and who arranges unloading. Use the same cargo quantities, packed dimensions and weight in every request.
Separate the work, charges and responsibilities
Ask for the transport stages and any consolidation, storage or repacking work to be described separately. For each stage, record who arranges the work, who supplies the information and who pays. These may be different parties. Ask the provider to identify the intended consignee, importer and service-provider roles for the actual goods and destination, together with any missing documents. Record how destination handling, applicable duties and taxes, unloading and any proposed insurance are treated. The words “door-to-door” alone do not specify these items.
Confirm assumptions, dates and changes
Keep the quoted currency, payment arrangements, validity date and cargo-ready date alongside the price. Ask when the time estimate starts and ends: an international freight estimate may exclude collection and final delivery. Record how changes in package count, dimensions, collection dates or delivery address will be quoted. Clarify how extra storage, waiting or other unplanned handling would be charged and authorized. Compare totals only after the scope and unresolved items are clear.
Your quote review checklist
Ask for every relevant item to be marked included, excluded, to be confirmed or not applicable. A blank item remains an open question; this list does not mean the service is included or available.
- Supplier collection — addresses and number of pickups
- Warehouse receiving — tasks and records
- Consolidation and storage — work and duration
- Packing — work and materials
- International freight — route and transport option
- Destination handling — identified charges
- Clearance coordination — service and information needed
- Duties and taxes — treatment in the quote
- Final delivery — address and receiving conditions
- Unloading — people and equipment
- Cargo insurance — proposed cover and separate terms
- Changes — extra work and approval process
Apply this to your shipment
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE
A delivery address is on the third floor, but the proposed service ends at the building entrance. Before accepting it, state the unloading access, stairs or lift, and who moves the goods inside. Ask for a revised scope or arrange the remaining work separately. The phrase “door-to-door” alone does not describe these site tasks.
Check before the next step
- List the exact pickup and handover points.
- Ask who handles unloading, appointments and any excluded destination work.
- Confirm how changes in cargo data or delivery access affect the quotation.
Terms in plain language
- Service scope
- The tasks and endpoints explicitly included in a proposal. Name the party responsible for anything excluded.
- Consignee
- The person or organisation named to receive the shipment. Confirm the exact name and receiving contact.
Reference reading
- ICC Academy · Incoterms® 2020: CFR vs FOB & the title transfer myth (English; opens a new tab)
Explains why Incoterms do not replace a sales contract or settle ownership and payment terms.
NEXT STEP
Door-to-door planning
Coordinate origin collection, international freight and delivery scope in one shipment plan.
