Create and assign fuel surcharge plans

Utilizing a regularly updated fuel index can provide more accurate fuel cost estimates to your customer. Turvo provides the ability to create a fuel surcharge (FSC) plan that retrieves prices from an external fuel index, such as the United States Department of Energy (USDoE) fuel index, to more accurately estimate fuel surcharges based on the current market fuel price for the region(s) in which your shipment takes place.

In this article, the sections of which are outlined below, you will learn more about using a fuel index to create and apply an FSC plan to rate your shipments in Turvo.

• How it works
  • Differences from other fuel surcharge rating methods
• Fuel Index Integration
  • Integration with the USDoE fuel index
• Create a FSC plan
  • FSC plans with a Per mile Surcharge basis
  • FSC plans with a % of freight Surcharge basis
• Add a fuel cost range to the FSC plan and update an existing FSC plan
• Adding an FSC plan to a customer or carrier account
• Rating a shipment with the FSC plan

Note: Only Super admin and Financial admin users can create, update, and archive FSC plans, while any user with access to the Rates page can view existing plans.

How it works

The steps below outline the basic procedure for how FSC plans are created and assigned in your tenant, as well as the logic for determining which FSC plans apply to a shipment:

1. A fuel index integration must be configured for your tenant.
2. An FSC plan must be created.
3. Each FSC plan must have a fuel cost range table applied to it. Fuel cost range tables are created on a route-by-route basis, by inputting information into the Add fuel cost range modal.
4. Before an FSC plan can be used to rate fuel surcharges, it must be applied to at least one of the following: 
   1. To the tenant via the Admin console, where default FSC plans can be applied for all customers and all carriers. 
      1. Multiple FSC plans can be applied for customers and carriers on the same tenant to cover different shipment modes.
   2. To a customer or carrier account, where an FSC plan can be applied for all of that customer’s or carrier’s shipments, so long as the shipment’s route and mode match the FSC plan.
      1. Multiple FSC plans can be applied to a carrier/customer account. 
   3. To a specific contract or global rate, where the FSC plan can be applied to all shipments that the contract or global rate is applicable to.
      1. Only one FSC plan can be applied to a contract or global rate.
5. When using the RATE function in the Costs segments of a shipment’s Customers or Carriers block, applicable FSC plans are available in the Select rate modal’s Fuel surcharge plan tab. 
   1. Turvo determines which FSC plans are applicable by checking the contract/global rate, account, and tenant level FSC plan configurations. Precedence is given to the most narrowly scoped configuration.
      Protip: This logic is explained in greater detail in the How Turvo determines which FSC plans are available section below.
   2. Selecting an FSC plan will apply a Fuel - per mile or Fuel - Percent of freight surcharge to the Costs segment, based on the parameters of the FSC plan, the effective fuel index price, and the distance or freight costs of the shipment.

Fuel index integration

The first recommended step in creating and applying FSC plans is to have your tenant configured for integration with an external fuel index provider. Submit a configuration request to Turvo Support for integration. Without an integration, the FSC plans you create cannot be applied to customer and carrier accounts.

Note: USDoE is the only index provider that can be integrated with your Turvo tenant at this time.

See our article, How to submit support requests and view requests, to learn more about the Support request process.

Integration with the USDoE fuel index

The USDoE fuel index provides week-to-week average fuel price updates based on nationwide or regional averages for different types and grades of fuel. Each region and type of fuel is presented as a separate fuel index that can be selected in your FSC plan.

Create an FSC plan

To create an FSC plan, use the steps outlined in the following sections.

1. Use the left navigation bar to navigate to Rates > Fuel surcharge plans.

2. In the Fuel surcharge plans page, click +Add plan.

3. The Create fuel surcharge plan modal appears.

4. Use the fields provided in the modal to define your FSC plan.
   1. Plan name: Enter a unique name for the FSC plan.
   2. Surcharge basis: Use the drop-down menu to select the basis by which the rate is applied, either % of freight or Cost per mile.
      1. The section below describes how Turvo uses each surcharge basis to calculate the fuel surcharge.
   3. Modes: Use the drop-down menu to select all of the shipment modes that the FSC plan is applicable to.
   4. Currency: The default currency used for your tenant is automatically applied to the FSC plan.
   5. Add cost range upon creation: Click this checkbox to indicate that you wish to launch the Add fuel cost range modal for the FSC plan immediately after clicking CREATE. 
      1. Important note: The only way to configure an automatically calculated fuel cost range table is by enabling this checkbox. FSC plans that are created and configured with cost ranges later will be limited to manually-configured fuel cost range tables.
5. Once you have completed your configuration, click CREATE to create the FSC plan. Depending on whether the Add cost range upon creation checkbox was selected, one of the following will occur:
   1. If selected, the Add fuel cost range modal will appear, as described in the Creating an automatically-calculated fuel cost range table section. 
   2. If not, you will need to manually create a fuel cost range table, as described in the Manually creating a fuel cost range table section.

Updating a plan’s fuel surcharge basis or mode

Turvo allows you to update an FSC plan’s Surcharge basis or supported Modes. 

In the Fuel surcharge plans page list view:

1. Click the More actions icon on the right side of the FSC plan’s row, then click Edit in the drop-down menu.

2. The Edit fuel surcharge plan modal appears.
3. Update the Modes and/or Surcharge basis fields as needed.
   1. The Plan name and Currency fields are locked. 
4. Click SAVE.

Archiving FSC plans

If you would like to make an existing FSC plan unavailable for use on your tenant, you can archive it. To archive an FSC plan, in the Fuel surcharge plans page list view:

1. Click the More actions icon on the right side of the FSC plan’s row, then click Archive in the drop-down menu.
2. When prompted, click Yes. 

3. The FSC plan will be removed from the Fuel surcharge plans page.

Adding fuel cost ranges to the FSC plan

Once created, the FSC plan appears in the Rates > Fuel surcharge plans list view, along with any existing FSC plans in your tenant. The FSC plan is not ready for use until you have added a fuel cost range table to the plan. Use the subsections below to learn more about creating and managing automatically-calculated or manually-created fuel cost range tables.

Important note: FSC plans can support multiple fuel cost range tables. However, even for plans where the initial fuel cost range table was automatically-calculated, all additional fuel cost range tables must be created manually.

Creating an automatically-calculated fuel cost range table

If the Add cost range upon creation checkbox is selected when creating a new FSC plan, the automatic calculation version of the Add fuel cost range modal will appear immediately. Follow the steps outlined below to create the fuel cost range table.

1. Use the following fields in the modal to configure the fuel cost range table:
   1. Origin & Destination: The origin & destination locations for the shipment route the fuel cost range table will be applied to.
      1. Important note: The start and endpoints of the route in the fuel cost range table can be used to cover a blanket area. This can be done at the location, city, state, or even country level. For example, selecting USA in both fields would mean that the cost range applies to any shipment where the shipment’s origin and destination locations are in the United States.

2. 2. Index: The index used to calculate the FSC plan.
      1. Note: The USDoE Fuel Index integration is the only external fuel index integration available for FSC plans at this time. This drop-down will display the individual indices found in the USDoE Fuel Index, which are based on region and fuel type.
   3. Index effectiveness: The effective date of the index that should be used when calculating rates for a shipment. Use the drop-down to select from Current or one of the seven days of the week.
      1. Current: The USDoE Fuel Index updates fuel prices every Monday. Selecting Current will mean that your shipments will begin using the most recent index prices immediately upon their release.
      2. Monday - Sunday: Selecting a day of the week will indicate which day of the week that your shipments will begin using the most recent index prices.
         1. For example, if you selected Wednesday, the most recent fuel index prices will not start applying to shipments until Wednesday, meaning any shipments that are rated/re-rated on Monday or Tuesday will use the previous week’s fuel index prices.
   4. Index min/max: The lowest/highest per gallon fuel rate (dollar amount) that a fuel surcharge will be applied to. If the fuel rate falls below the minimum or above the maximum, Turvo will not create a fuel surcharge.
      1. Note: While you can enter up to six decimal values, Turvo displays the price rounded up to the nearest third decimal value. 
   5. Index increment: The increment by which Turvo will create the cost ranges for the fuel index. 
   6. Surcharge minimum: The minimum fuel surcharge rate. This will be used for the lowest cost range in your FSC plan. All incremental increases will use this as the starting point.
      1. For Cost per mile FSC plans, the minimum dollar amount that will be used to calculate the per mile fuel surcharge. 
      2. For Percent of freight FSC plans, this will be the minimum percentage of freight costs that will be used to calculate the fuel surcharge.
   7. Surcharge increment: The per mile amount or percentage that the fuel surcharge will increase for each cost range in the table.
      1. For Cost per mile FSC plans, this will be the dollar amount that the surcharge rate will increase.
      2. For Percent of freight FSC plans, this will be the percentage that the fuel surcharge will increase. Be sure to format this as a whole number. Entering “0.01” will increase the surcharge by 0.01%, not 1.0%.
   8. Currency: The default currency used for your tenant is automatically applied to the fuel cost range.

2. Once your additions are complete, click CALCULATE to preview the cost ranges that will be applied. This may take a few seconds to load. 
   1. If the fuel cost range is for a Cost per mile FSC plan, the table will show the Index minimum price and Index maximum price for each cost range, and the Surcharge shows the dollar amount that will be charged per mile if the index’s fuel price falls one or between those prices.
   2. If the fuel cost range is for a Percent of freight FSC plan, the table will show the Index minimum price and Index maximum price for each cost range, and the Surcharge column shows the percentage of the shipment’s total Freight cost items that will be used to calculate the fuel surcharge.

Note: The cost ranges displayed will have an Index max value that is $0.001 less than the following Index min value. For example, if the first cost range has an Index min of $2.000 the Index increment is set to 0.05, then the Index max of the first cost range will be $2.049 and the Index min of the next cost range will be $2.050.

3. If you are satisfied, click CREATE. If not, update the fields and click RECALCULATE to review your changes. 
   1. It may take a few moments for Turvo to complete the calculation or to apply the new fuel cost range table. Wait patiently until the blue loading circle disappears before clicking away from the modal.
4. Once saved, the fuel cost range appears in the right pane where the FSC plan’s details are shown. Each fuel cost range table on the FSC plan is displayed separately, one for each route. Click Show more to see more of the cost range preview.

Editing an automatically-calculated fuel cost range table

The automatically-calculated fuel cost range table can be updated and re-calculated. To edit an existing fuel cost range table: 

1. Click the More actions icon to the right of the Basis field.

2. The Edit fuel cost range modal appears, which uses the same fields and procedures described above in the previous section.

3. Update the fields you wish to update; use the CALCULATE button if you wish to review your changes.
4. Click SAVE when you are done.

Manually creating a fuel cost range table

If you are adding an initial fuel cost range table after creation of the FSC plan or you are adding an additional fuel cost range table to an FSC plan with an existing table (even if it was automatically calculated), you will need to manually create your fuel cost range table by inputting each cost range individually. 

A fuel cost range table can have multiple cost ranges applied to it. 

Note: If multiple fuel cost range tables in the same FSC plan can apply to the same shipment, both potential surcharge rates will appear as options when rating the shipment.

To manually create a fuel cost range table, in the Rates > Fuel surcharge plans page: 

1. Click on the FSC plan to display details on the plan in the right pane, where details on the FSC plan are displayed. 
   1. This includes the number of customers and carrier accounts that the FSC plan is applied to, and a list of the existing fuel cost range tables in the plan. Clicking See more at the bottom of the table will allow you to preview the current cost ranges.
2. Click +Add more in the Fuel cost range section of the right pane.

3. The manual version of the Add fuel cost range modal appears.

4. Use the provided fields to create a cost range. Once cost range will be a single row on the fuel cost range table. The fields here will match the function of those found in the Creating an automatically-calculated fuel cost range table section above, with the following exceptions:
   1. Index min/max: The lowest/highest per gallon fuel rate (dollar amount) that this specific cost range will apply to. If the fuel rate falls below the minimum or above the maximum, Turvo will not use this cost range to create a fuel surcharge.
      1. Note: While you can enter up to six decimal values, Turvo displays the price rounded up to the nearest third decimal value. 
   2. Rate: The amount or percentage applied for the fuel surcharge if the index price falls between the prices listed in the Index min/max fields.
      1. In a Cost per mile FSC plan, if you entered “2.501” in Index min, “3.000” in Index max, and “0.25” in Rate, then applying the FSC plan to a shipment would create a Fuel - per mile cost item of $0.25 per mile if the effective index price falls between $2.501 and $3.00. 
      2. In a Percent of freight FSC plan, if you entered “2.501” in Index min, “3.000” in Index max, and “5.000” in Rate, and if the effective index price falls between $2.501 and $3.00, then applying the FSC plan to a shipment would create a Percent of freight cost item that charges 5% of the shipment’s total freight cost items. 
5. If you are satisfied, click CREATE. 
6. Once saved, the new fuel cost range table appears in the right pane where the FSC plan’s details are shown. 

From here, you can add more cost ranges to the table or update the existing cost ranges.

Adding more cost ranges/tables to an FSC plan

Any FSC plan, whether the initial fuel cost range table was automatically-calculated or manually-created, can have additional cost ranges added to it. However, if the initial fuel cost range table was automatically-calculated, then any new cost ranges will be added in a separate fuel cost range table, even if the route and index match the original table. 

If the new cost range’s Origin & Destination match an existing manually-created fuel cost range table, then the new fuel cost range will be added to the existing table. If they do not match an existing table, the new cost range will be added as the first cost range in a new fuel cost range table. 

To add more cost ranges to an FSC plan:

1. Click the + Add more button at the top of the Fuel cost range section of the right pane.

2. The Add fuel cost range modal appears. This will be identical to the modal used to create the initial cost range on the table, as described in the Manually creating a fuel cost range table section above.
3. Configure the new cost range using the provided fields.
   1. Protip: Cost ranges in the same table can utilize different fuel indices and different index effectiveness days, allowing additional flexibility in creating your fuel cost ranges and using the same fuel cost range table for multiple scenarios.
4. When you are done, click CREATE.
5. The new fuel cost range will be added to the table. 
6. Repeat this process until you have added all of the cost ranges you wish for the FSC plan’s fuel cost range table(s) to cover.

Preventing fuel cost range gaps and errors when manually creating a table

While manually creating cost ranges, you should take care that you do not overlap cost ranges or leave gaps between cost ranges. If the fuel index price falls into a gap between ranges or under two overlapping ranges, you may experience issues when applying the FSC plan to a shipment.

Preventing gaps

One advantage of utilizing multiple decimal values for your cost range is that fuel prices are often listed up to three decimal values. For example, at the fuel pump, you usually see a price of $3.989 per gallon and not $3.99.

This may cause an issue if your cost ranges fail to account for prices in between a “whole cent.”

• If one cost range (row) in the fuel cost range table has an Index min of “0.00” and an Index max of “2.50,” then any fuel index price that is equal to or less than $2.50 falls under that cost range.
• If the next cost range in the same table is configured as from $2.51 to $2.75, then any fuel index price that is equal to or greater than $2.510, but not greater than $2.750, falls under the second cost range.

The mistake in this scenario is that, If the fuel index price falls between $2.501 and $2.509, then the FSC plan cannot account for this price and it fails to return a fuel surcharge. To prevent this gap, the first cost range should have been from $0.00 to $2.50 and the second cost range  should have been from $2.501 to $2.75.

Overlapping cost ranges

You should also be careful not to set two cost ranges where the Index min/max fields overlap. For example, if a row in the table has an Index min of $2.751 and an Index max of $3.00, and another row is configured from $2.95 to $3.20, an error may occur if the FSC plan is assigned when the fuel index price is anywhere between $2.95 and $3.00

Editing an individual cost range

Individual cost ranges can only be edited in manually-created cost range tables. To edit an existing fuel cost range table: 

1. Click the More actions icon to the right of the Surcharge field in the cost range’s row on the table in the right pane.

2. This will launch the Edit fuel cost range modal. 
3. Update the fields you wish to change.
4. Click SAVE when you are done.

Important note: Changing the Origin or Destination in an existing cost range will remove that cost range from its current table and move it into a new or existing table that matches the new location information. Changing the location information back to its original configuration will move the cost range back to its original table.

Note: Cost ranges cannot be deleted, but can be updated to the configuration you need.

Adding FSC plans for use at the tenant, account, and contract/global rate level

Once created, an FSC plan can be applied at various levels within your tenant. The more narrow the focus of the setting, the more precedence Turvo will give to that FSC plan when rating an applicable shipment.

Adding FSC plans to your tenant for use across all customers/carriers

To add FSC plans to your tenant that can be used for all customers and all carriers:

1. Log in to Turvo and navigate to the Admin console. Click your profile icon in the top right corner, then select Admin console from the drop-down.

2. Click the Settings card.

3. In the Admin console > Settings page, click the Shipments section header, then click the Fuel surcharge plan segment header to expand the segment.

4. In the segment, use Carrier fuel surcharge plan and Customer fuel surcharge plan areas to configure default FSC plans. To configure a default FSC plan for either, click + Add Plan, then start typing the name of the FSC plan you wish to apply in the Default carrier/customer fuel surcharge plan text field.
   1. FSC plans with matching names will appear below the text field. Select the plan you wish to apply for carriers or customers.
   2. The modes applied to the plan will automatically populate in the Modes field. Click the X next to the mode if you do not want this FSC plan to be available to all customers/carriers for shipments of that mode.
   3. Note: Multiple FSC plans can be applied for customers and carriers. However, each mode can only be applied to one FSC plan at a time. If two plans covering the same modes are added, you will not be able to save your settings.

5. When you have made your selections, click SAVE.

The configured plan(s) can now be used for all customers or carriers if the shipment’s mode matches the configuration and the shipment matches the plans’ fuel cost range tables.

Adding an FSC plan to a specific customer or carrier account

You can also apply FSC plans at the account level to your customers and carriers in Turvo for automatic rating in your shipments with that customer or carrier. This is useful if you use different surcharge rates for a particular customer or carrier than what you might otherwise use.

Use the following steps to apply an FSC plan for your customer or carrier. The process for each account type is the same.

1. Navigate to Accounts > Customers / Carriers and find the customer or carrier account you wish to configure. 
2. Open the Details tab and scroll down to the Settings section. Click the section’s header to expand it.
3. Click the Fuel surcharge segment header to open it.

4. Select one of your existing FSC plans using the Fuel surcharge plan field. 
   1. Type a name in the field and select from matching results.

5. Use the Modes field to select the shipment modes that the FSC plan will be applicable to this customer/carrier.
6. Click SAVE.

Note: Click +Add item to add additional FSC plans to the account.

Once saved, the selected FSC plan can be applied to that carrier’s/customer’s shipments, if the shipment’s mode matches the FSC plan’s available modes and the route matches one of the FSC plan’s fuel cost range tables.

Adding an FSC plan to a contract or global rate

Your FSC plans can also be added to your contracts or global rates, allowing for up-to-date fuel surcharges to be created whenever that contract or global rate is applied to a shipment. 

Protip: See our Help Center for more information on creating a contract and creating a global rate, if you haven’t already.

To add an FSC plan to an existing contract or global rate:

1. In the left navigation bar, hover your cursor over Rates and click either Contracts or Global rates 
   1. You can also use the global search at the top of Turvo to search for the contract or global rate.

2. In the Rates > Contracts or Global rates page, click the contract or global rate you wish to add an FSC plan to.
3. In the contract or global rate, click the Details tab, then click the Fuel surcharge plan section header.

4. In the Fuel surcharge plan text field, begin typing the name of the FSC plan that you wish to apply. 
5. A drop-down will appear showing matching results. Select the FSC plan.
6. Click SAVE.

This FSC plan will now be available when using the associated contract or global rate to rate a shipment. The modes and routes available in the FSC plan’s fuel cost ranges

Rating a shipment with the FSC plan

Once your FSC plans are created, you can use the RATE function in a shipment to select from matching FSC plans and apply the appropriate fuel surcharge to the shipment’s costs.

See our article, How to rate a shipment, to learn more about rating a shipment using the FSC plan.

How Turvo determines which FSC plans are available

Turvo uses the following rules to determine which FSC plans are applicable to the shipment for the creation of fuel surcharges:

1. If a contract or global rate with an FSC plan is applicable to the shipment for that customer/carrier, and the shipment’s route and mode match the FSC plan configured for the contract/global rate, then only that FSC plan is available for selection.
2. If a contract or global rate without an FSC plan is applied to the shipment (or if no contract or global rate is applied at all), but the carrier/customer has one or more account-level FSC plans with matching routes and modes, then the account-level plans are available for selection. 
3. If no contract/global rate-level and no account-level FSC plans are applicable, but a tenant-level FSC plan is applicable, then that FSC plan is available for selection.

Note: If an applicable FSC plan has multiple fuel cost range tables that are also applicable to the shipment, then you will be able to select which applicable fuel surcharge to create.

How FSC plans with a Cost per mile Surcharge basis calculate rates

Turvo calculates Cost per mile fuel surcharges using the process outlined in the examples below. 

1. Turvo checks the FSC plan(s) applied to the customer’s or carrier’s account. 
   1. Example step 1: You have multiple FSC plans applied to the customer’s account. Turvo checks the applied FSC plans for fuel cost range tables that might be applicable.
2. If the shipment’s route matches the route of one or more of the FSC plan’s fuel cost range tables, the matching table(s) can be used to calculate a fuel surcharge.
   1. Example step 2: There is a Cost per mile FSC plan applied with a cost range where the route matches the shipment’s route. Therefore, only this fuel cost range table in this FSC plan will be available to rate the shipment. The table has the following configurations: 

3. Turvo takes the effective date’s per-gallon fuel price from the fuel index and compares it to the fuel cost range table. The surcharge amount indicated in the matching cost range is used.
   1. Example step 3: USDoE’s U.S. Average - on-highway diesel index’s fuel price for today’s date is $5.65. Turvo checks the fuel cost range table for the cost range that includes $5.65, which indicates the surcharge should be $0.93 per mile.
4. Turvo uses the distance on the shipment and the fuel surcharge rate from the FSC plan and determines the Fuel - per mile cost item to apply to the customer or carrier costs on the shipment. The distance is added as the Quantity of the cost item and the fuel surcharge rate is the Price of the cost item.
   1. Example step 4: The estimated distance of the shipment is 968 miles, then the Fuel - per mile cost item reflects a price of $0.93 and a quantity of 968, totaling $900.24.

Note: If the Cost type selected during FSC plan creation is Fuel - per kilometer, the same process applies if your tenant measures shipment distances in kilometers.

How FSC plans with a Percent of freight Surcharge basis calculate rates

When a Percent of freight FSC plan is added to shipment, Turvo calculates the surcharge using the process outlined below:

1. Turvo checks the FSC plan(s) applied to the customer’s or carrier’s account. 
   1. Example step 1: You have multiple FSC plans applied to the customer’s account. Turvo checks the applied FSC plans for fuel cost range tables that might be applicable.
2. If the shipment’s route matches the route of one or more of the FSC plan’s fuel cost range tables, the matching table(s) can be used to calculate a fuel surcharge.
   1. Example step 2: There is a Percent of freight FSC plan applied with a cost range where the route matches the shipment’s route. Therefore, only this fuel cost range table in this FSC plan will be available to rate the shipment. The table has the following configurations: 

3. Turvo takes the effective date’s per-gallon fuel price from the fuel index and compares it to the fuel cost range table. The surcharge amount indicated in the matching cost range is used.
   1. Example step 3: USDoE’s West Coast less California - on-highway diesel index’s fuel price for the current date is $6.03. Turvo checks the fuel cost range table for the cost range that includes $6.03, which indicates the surcharge should be 18% of the total Freight cost items.
4. Turvo creates a new Fuel - percent of freight item. The percentage from the cost range appears in the Quantity field and the total amount of the shipment’s “Freight -” cost items appears in the Price field. The Amount field shows the total amount that equals the percentage of the freight cost.
   1. Example step 4: The customer’s shipment costs include a Freight - flat cost item that totals $2,500. The Fuel - percent of freight cost item that is created charges 18% of $2500. The total fuel surcharge billed to the customer is $450.