A charge is the billable amount ShipHero creates when an event closes and a rate's conditions are met. Charges collect on the Charges screen, where you review them, fix anything that came through wrong, and mark them as invoiced before exporting them to your accounting system.
New to 3PL Billing Alpha? Start with Overview: 3PL Billing Alpha in ShipHero.
Table of Contents
- How ShipHero Creates Charges from Closed Events
- How to Edit a Charge in 3PL Billing Alpha
- 3PL Billing Alpha Charge Statuses Explained
- How Reopening an Inbound Shipment Affects Charges
- How to Mark Charges as Invoiced and Export Them in 3PL Billing Alpha
How ShipHero Creates Charges from Closed Events
ShipHero creates charges from closed events, recurring schedules, recurring storage snapshots, ad hoc entries, and wholesale orders. When you close an event, ShipHero runs it through the rate engine using the rates configured for that client. When a rate's conditions are met, ShipHero creates a charge and shows it on the Charges screen with its quantity.
For events, the quantity comes from the rate type:
| Rate type | Where the quantity comes from |
|---|---|
| Accessorial | The quantity a warehouse worker entered during the event. |
| Transactional | The quantity ShipHero derived from the event automatically. |
ShipHero also creates charges from sources that are not event-based rate types. Each source follows its own timing:
| Charge source | When ShipHero creates the charge | Where the quantity comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Recurring | On the recurring schedule you set for a Flat fee rate, not when an event closes. See Recurring Transaction Type in 3PL Billing Alpha. | A recurring Flat fee charge has no quantity. |
| Recurring storage | On the scheduled charge day, based on the storage snapshot ShipHero takes at 12 a.m. See How to Set Up Recurring Storage Billing in 3PL Billing Alpha. | The number of Pallet LPNs and Box LPNs in storage. |
| Ad hoc | Right away, when you save the charge. See How to Create Ad Hoc Charges in 3PL Billing Alpha. | The details you enter when you create the charge. |
| Wholesale orders | From the accessorial quantities a worker records on the wholesale order. See How to Enter Accessorial Charges on Wholesale Orders in 3PL Billing Alpha. | The quantity a warehouse worker entered on the order. |
To open the Charges screen, go to Billing (Alpha) > Charges. For more on rate types, see Understanding Transaction Types and Rate Types in 3PL Billing Alpha.
How to Edit a Charge in 3PL Billing Alpha
- Go to Billing (Alpha) > Charges.
- Select the charge you want to review to open its detail.
- Update the charge.
- Save your change.
Editing a charge fixes that one charge. If the same problem affects many charges, fix the rate and then rerun the events. See How to Recalculate Charges in 3PL Billing Alpha.
3PL Billing Alpha Charge Statuses Explained
Every charge arrives with a status of Ready to Invoice. Change the status to track charges you are still checking and to keep incorrect charges off your client's invoice.
| Status | What it means | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Ready to Invoice | The default status for every new charge. | Leave it here when the charge is correct. |
| Needs Review | The charge is flagged for a second look. | Use it when you are not sure the charge is right. |
| Do Not Invoice | The charge is excluded from invoicing. | Use it when you have confirmed the charge is wrong. |
| Invoiced | The charge has been billed to the client. | Set it once you are ready to bill. |
Charge status also controls what happens if the inbound shipment is reopened, covered in the next section.
Invoicing is not built yet, so there is no draft invoice status or object today. When invoicing ships, it will protect invoiced charges from the behavior described below. Until then, every charge on this list, including one you have marked Invoiced, is deleted if the inbound shipment is reopened.
How Reopening an Inbound Shipment Affects Charges
Reopening a closed inbound shipment deletes every charge attached to it, regardless of status. When you reclose the shipment, ShipHero generates new charges based on the shipment's updated details. This means the charge status you set, including Invoiced, does not carry over. There is no duplicate charge risk: the old charges are gone before the new ones are created.
Reopening deletes Invoiced charges too
Marking a charge Invoiced does not protect it from reopening the inbound shipment. If you reopen a shipment after invoicing its charges, those charges are deleted and replaced with new ones set to Ready to Invoice when you reclose. Re-check the Charges screen and update your accounting system if you already exported the original charges.
How to Mark Charges as Invoiced and Export Them in 3PL Billing Alpha
- Go to Billing (Alpha) > Charges.
- Filter the charges by the time frame you are billing.
- Review the charges in the list and confirm the statuses are correct.
- Select the charges you want to bill.
- Change the status to Invoiced.
- Filter the grid by the Invoiced status.
- Select Export and load the file into your accounting system.
Check statuses before you set charges to Invoiced
Charges set to Needs Review or Do Not Invoice are still visible in the grid. Confirm you have resolved them before you select charges in bulk, so a charge you meant to hold back does not reach your client.