Freight - Shipment Lift Gate Information

There is often confusion about how freight works and how lift gate deliveries work.  Freight is used only when shipments are 150LBS or higher or over sized.  I want to make sure that everyone understands how the freight shipments work.  The standard shipping is basically curb-side delivery.  The delivery company will contact you to schedule a delivery appointment.  Usually you will get a call a day or two ahead of time or at least be given a three to four hour window.  The truck will normally pull up to the curb and if the truck does not have a lift gate, you  would be responsible for getting the item off the back of the semi truck.  A lift gate is just a hydraulic lift that is attached to the back of a truck that can lower freight to the ground.
 
That being said, sometimes the drivers will help but they are not obligated in any way to help.  There is no guarantee that the truck will come with a lift gate unless you order a lift gate delivery for an additional charge.  The charge for a guaranteed lift gate varies by product or manufacture.  We have seen it as low as $25.00 and as high as $125.00. 

We get the question all the time from people "how does the delivery company expect residential customers to get the freight off the truck?"   The answer is: they expect you to pay for a lift gate delivery.  One thing you do not want to do is have a truck come out and try to deliver with out a lift gate and then not have a way to get it off the back of the truck.  If you can not get the freight off the truck then there will be a redelivery fee on top of the full retail lift gate fee.  Unfortunately the freight companies have us stuck between a rock and a hard place.  Our recommendation is to just get the lift gate delivery unless you have a way to unload the freight.