Missing Manifest Fees: Why You Need End-of-Day SCAN Forms

If you don't scan your shipments into a carrier manifest before they leave your facility, some carriers charge $1–$3 per package for "missing manifest" or "non-manifested" shipments. Ship 100 packages a day without manifesting and that's $100–$300 daily.

What Is a Shipping Manifest?

A manifest (also called a SCAN form or end-of-day form) is a summary document that tells the carrier: "Here are all the packages I'm shipping today." It's a single barcode that the driver scans to accept all packages at once.

How Missing Manifest Fees Happen

UPS and FedEx may charge non-manifest fees for scheduled pickups without a manifest. USPS encourages SCAN forms but doesn't charge for missing them.

3 Steps to Eliminate This Fee

1. Create a SCAN Form Every Day

Every shipping platform (including Atoship) has a "Create SCAN Form" or "End of Day" button. Click it after your last label of the day. Print the form and hand it to the driver.

2. Automate Manifest Creation

Set your shipping software to auto-generate the manifest at a fixed time (e.g., 30 minutes before carrier pickup). No manual step, no forgotten manifests.

3. Reconcile Labels vs. Manifest

Before the driver arrives, compare your manifest package count against your physical packages. If you printed 47 labels but only have 45 packages, two labels were voided or not used—remove them from the manifest.

USPS SCAN Forms

USPS SCAN forms aren't required, but they provide two benefits:

• All packages get an acceptance scan immediately (customers see "Accepted" tracking right away)
• If a package is lost, having an acceptance scan strengthens your insurance claim

Generate a USPS SCAN form every day. It takes 5 seconds and costs nothing.