During the Quote/Shipping process, if no rates meet expectations or non-integrated carriers are involved, the system can send Spot Quote Requests via email.

When a carrier receives the email, they are guided through the spot quote submission process, and their responses are displayed to the shipper. Pending Spot Quotes can also be accessed in the Dashboard pop-out.

Important Notes:

  • Spot Quotes are valid for 24 hours. After this period, they remain visible but cannot be used to ship directly.

  • Users can either resend the Spot Quote request or manually select it from the Carrier dropdown and enter the cost if they believe the rate is still valid.

Requesting a Spot Quote

On the Quote/Ship page, while rate shopping, users can initiate a Spot Quote by clicking the Spot Quote button on the Rates card.

Currently, users must rate shop first before requesting a Spot Quote. This step is necessary to generate a quote ID on the FreightPOP platform, ensuring the Spot Quote is properly linked to a transaction.

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Once selected, the user will be presented with the Spot Quote Request Modal (below).

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Spot Quote Requests consist of four main parts. From the modal, the user must provide:

  1. Ship Date / Arrive By Date

  2. Special Instructions – including Pickup and Delivery Instructions

  3. Time Windows – Ready Time, Cutoff Time, Open Time, and Close Time

  4. Attachments – Shipment-related documents can be included

Carriers

Carriers can be selected individually or grouped for faster selection if they are set up under Spot Quote Groups in Carrier Management.

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Once a carrier is selected, a field will appear to enter an email address for the Spot Quote request. If the carrier has an email saved in Carrier Management, it will auto-fill.

Users can also add a second email by selecting it from the dropdown or pressing Enter to manually input another address.

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When the Confirm button is clicked, the shipment details and request information are sent via email to the selected carriers or spot quote groups.

To view recent Spot Quotes, go to the Dashboard by clicking the Dashboard icon on the left side of the screen. Then, select the warehouse from the location dropdown and click on the number of pending spot quotes to review them.

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Clicking on a Spot Quote from the Dashboard allows you to see the total number of requests, the number of carrier responses received, and other key details to help identify recipients.

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From this view, you can either view a Spot Quote or remove it from your pending quotes. Once removed, it cannot be added back to the Dashboard but remains accessible through the history report.

Open Spot Quotes can also be found in history or recent quotes. In the recent quotes modal:

  • A grey dot indicates a pending response.

  • A green dot means carriers have responded

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Selecting a Carrier Contact

When selecting a carrier or carrier group, the default contact will be populated.

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Edit a Spot Quote

If a carrier does not respond through the submission portal, the user can reopen the Quote and manually enter the rate. When a quote is entered this way, only one quote can be accepted.

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Spot Quote Responses

The user who sends the request and the carrier are both copied on Spot Quote responses, unless the user opts out in email settings.

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Tracking Spot Quoted Shipments

For user-defined carriers, tracking updates must be entered manually through one of the following methods:

  • Carrier portal

  • Tracking update request email

  • Tracking screen (using the pencil icon)

For API-connected carriers, tracking updates are automatically processed through the tracking API, provided the tracking number/PRO is correct.