By Mike Beckwith, VP Operations, Odyssey Logistics
Here’s a scenario that plays out more often than you’d think: A shipper moves eight (8) pallets of freight. They expect a $500 invoice. Instead, they get hit with $2,500.
This wasn’t a billing error. The shipment exceeded the carrier’s cubic capacity limits — buried deep in their contract. What the shipper thought was a straightforward LTL move suddenly required dedicated capacity at five times the cost.
If you’re a truckload shipper moving into LTL, here’s the hard truth: much of the knowledge you’ve learned from truckload will not apply. And that knowledge gap could be expensive.
Here are six of the most common LTL mistakes — and how Odyssey’s approach can help you avoid them.
Six expensive LTL misunderstandings
1. Thinking weight determines LTL cost
Most shippers make a dangerous assumption. They think: “I can ship 44,000 pounds as a full truckload. This shipment is 20,000 pounds. That’s LTL.”
LTL pricing doesn’t work on weight alone. Cube, density, and linear footage matter more. Each asset-based carrier has cubic capacity limitations. Once you exceed those thresholds — even if you’re under weight limits—your quoted rate becomes worthless. The carrier must dedicate a truck to your freight, and you’re stuck paying truckload rates without realizing it.
2. Pricing per unit instead of per footprint
You’re paying for linear footage, not per-unit cost. Two (2) barrels or four (4) barrels on a 48×48 pallet take up the same footprint.
Imagine a shipper asks for pricing on one (1) barrel versus six (6) barrels versus eight (8) barrels. They think more barrels equals higher cost in a linear way. Here’s what’s missing: regardless of how many barrels they’re shipping, they’re still taking up a 48×48 footprint. The freight has to be palletized. In LTL, it’s important to remember that you’re paying for linear footage, not per-unit cost.
3. Missing the 2025 NMFC changes
The National Motor Freight Classification system changed in 2025. Many shippers haven’t accounted for these pricing impacts in their budgets. Misclassification is rampant. Companies don’t realize their class is wrong until invoices arrive higher than expected.
At Odyssey, we offer complimentary analysis of shipper LTL data to identify these misclassifications and show you why your plan rates versus actual rates aren’t matching up.
4. Using national carriers for regional freight
Centralized shippers default to national providers like Roadrunner, XPO, or FedEx Freight. They’re not analyzing regional carrier opportunities that could save 20-40% on specific lanes.
If you’ve got a cluster of freight in the Northeast market, you shouldn’t be using national partners for everything. Regional carriers often provide better rates based on lane density, but most companies don’t have the supply chain expertise to visualize these opportunities.
5. Missing consolidation patterns
Multiple LTL shipments to the same market should consolidate to truckload, then distribute regionally. Most shippers move them separately and overpay.
Let’s say you’ve got six (6) LTL orders coming out of New Jersey, all going to the Atlanta market. Most shippers move them separately. This, however, overlooks the opportunity to consolidate to truckload, move to an Atlanta terminal, then do hub-and-spoke LTL distribution in the regional market. Winning in LTL means knowing when and how to consolidate.
6. Managing carriers without scorecarding
Without data-driven scorecarding, you can’t identify underperforming carriers or red flags for claims.
Most shippers manage carriers based on “optics and feel” rather than data. If a high-visibility shipment gets declined, everyone notices. If a low-visibility shipment gets declined and another carrier covers it, nobody tracks the impact. Without systematic measurement, you can’t quantify which carriers are performing and which aren’t. You can’t identify patterns — and you can’t hold carriers accountable to clear acceptance rate expectations.
That’s where specialized LTL expertise makes the difference.
Odyssey's unique LTL capabilities
Avoiding these mistakes takes more than knowing they exist. It requires deep expertise and well-developed systems and networks. Partnering with Odyssey for LTL shipping brings several advantages.
70+ carrier network
Odyssey works with more than seventy (70) major LTL partners both nationally and regionally. This allows us to match carriers based on density and geography, finding the optimal solution for each shipment rather than forcing freight into a one-size-fits-all model. This broader reach also allows us to offer better consolidation opportunities to our customers — further reducing the cost of shipping.
Jones Act expertise
Odyssey provides LTL-to-LCL-to-LTL multimodal moves to Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Shipments consolidate in Jacksonville, FL, Fife, WA, or Fullerton, CA, convert to container, move via ocean freight, then complete final LTL delivery with Odyssey assets. With our Jones Act expertise, your freight can reach every American destination.
Deeper technology investments
Over the last several years, Odyssey has made significant investments into its technology that provide deeper visibility and customization possibilities for our customers.
We have proprietary systems we can white label for companies. If a major retailer becomes our customer and wants to manage vendor inbound freight, for example, we can create vendor logins that bill the retailer’s account with their logo. Vendors log in, enter details, and freight moves on the contracts we’ve set up.
Odyssey’s connected systems also create audit trails and verify carrier credentials, flagging planed rate versus actual rate discrepancies in real time. This adds audit mechanisms most internal logistics teams can’t replicate on their own.
Start with education
LTL doesn’t have to be opaque and unpredictable. Invoice surprises are preventable with the right knowledge and partner.
We offer free analysis of your LTL data to identify misclassifications inflating costs, discover regional carrier opportunities, and uncover consolidation possibilities for modal conversion.
Want to talk through your LTL strategy? Contact Odyssey to learn how we make complex freight simpler.
