Ask your carrier for a price by email, not another portal

Ask your carrier for a price by email, without making a new portal login part of the request. Put the shipment details and your questions in a clear message, compare the replies on the same basis, and use nocargo if you want those replies connected to the order.

Make the price request the task, not the login

Before asking a carrier to use another portal, look at the request from their side. Are you asking for a transport price, or asking them to create an account, find the shipment and learn where to respond? If your aim is simply to get an offer, keep that aim visible.

Do not assume an unanswered invitation means the carrier does not want the shipment. Ask whether they received the request and whether they would prefer to answer by email. Treat a missed response as something to clarify, rather than evidence about the carrier’s intentions.

You do not need to settle the broader question of why carriers ignore new logins. Remove the login requirement from your own process and make the response you need explicit: a price for the described shipment, with availability, inclusions and conditions.

Write a request the carrier can answer

Give the carrier enough detail to quote the shipment you actually intend to book. Avoid asking for a price against a vague description and filling in the important parts only after accepting an offer. If something is still undecided, mark it as undecided and ask what assumption the carrier has used.

Use this as a checklist, adapting it to the shipment:

• Collection and delivery: give the locations and the relevant site or contact details.
• Timing: state the requested collection and delivery arrangements, including any flexibility.
• Goods: describe what is being shipped and how it is packed.
• Size and weight: provide the dimensions, weight and loading space information you have.
• Handling: explain loading, unloading and any equipment requirements relevant to your request.
• Price scope: ask what the offer includes, what it excludes and which conditions apply.
• Response: say when you need an answer and ask the carrier to confirm availability.

If you need to work out loading metres, use the free LDM calculator. Keep the underlying dimensions in your request rather than replacing the shipment description with a calculation alone.

A reusable email structure could read:

Subject: Price request — [collection] to [delivery] — [shipment reference]

Please quote for the shipment below and confirm availability.Collection: [details]Delivery: [details]Goods and packaging: [details]Dimensions and weight: [details]Loading and unloading requirements: [details]Requested schedule: [details]

Please state the total price, what is included, any exclusions and the conditions of your offer. Please reply by [your deadline] and flag any assumptions or missing information.

Compare the offer, not just the price

Before choosing a carrier, check whether each reply answers the same request. Put the quoted price beside the proposed schedule, availability, inclusions, exclusions and conditions. Leave unanswered items visibly unresolved rather than treating a blank as confirmation.

If an offer changes part of your request, separate that change from the price comparison. For example, ask whether the proposed collection arrangement meets your requirement before deciding whether to accept it. Do not silently compare an offer for your requested service with an alternative you have not approved.

Use a direct follow-up for anything unclear: “Please confirm whether your offer covers the shipment as described, and identify any differences.” If you change the shipment details yourself, send the revised request to the carriers whose offers you are still considering.

When you book, state which offer you are accepting and retain the agreed details with the order. Avoid leaving the final decision scattered across a request, a revised price and a separate clarification.

Across EU countries

For a shipment across EU countries, make the request readable without relying on your internal shorthand. Write collection and delivery details explicitly, identify the units used for dimensions and weight, and distinguish requested arrangements from confirmed ones.

Agree a working language with the carrier. If a location, handling instruction or price condition is unclear, ask for clarification before booking rather than guessing what the reply means.

Keep this as a practical review: could someone reading only the request and the accepted offer understand what you asked for and what you booked? If not, bring the missing detail into the order.

How nocargo fits the email workflow

In nocargo, you add the carriers you already work with. A price request goes by email to the address you enter. Carriers never create an account: they can answer through a private link or reply to the email, and nocargo reads the email reply onto the order.

You can compare offers and book in one click. The carrier’s response therefore does not have to depend on adopting another account, while you can work with the offers on the order.

After booking, you can print the CMR and labels from the order, with tracking through to proof of delivery. See booking and documents for that part of the workflow.

nocargo is software, not a freight exchange or broker, and takes no margin on freight. It is for managing shipments with your own carriers, not replacing those relationships. You can review the plans on the pricing page and use the 14-day free trial.

Keep a reusable process, not a rigid message

Keep a request template, but read it against the actual shipment before sending. Remove irrelevant instructions, fill the gaps and make any uncertainty obvious. A copied message should still describe the load you want moved.

Use the same discipline when replies arrive: clarify differences, compare the agreed scope and record the accepted offer. Keep email as an easy way for the carrier to answer, without letting the final shipment details disappear into the correspondence.

Frequently asked questions

Why ask a carrier for a price by email instead of through a portal?

If you want a price without asking the carrier to adopt another system, use email. Keep the shipment details together, state what the offer should include and make the requested reply clear.

What should a carrier price request include?

Include collection and delivery details, the goods and packaging, dimensions and weight, loading requirements, your requested schedule and what you want included in the price. Ask the carrier to identify exclusions and conditions.

Does a carrier need a nocargo account to answer?

No. The request goes to the email address the shipper enters. The carrier can answer through a private link or reply to the email, and nocargo reads the email reply onto the order.

Is nocargo a freight exchange or broker?

No. nocargo is software for shippers using their own carriers. It is not a freight exchange or broker and takes no margin on freight.