Shipping charges in UPS module

[papafrankc]

I am in the United States and I have installed the UPS shipping module in my new 1.4.3 site. However it is returning charges that are 3 or more times the cost that they should be. I compared my Prestashop charges to the UPS web site and they are way off.

 

My USPS (USA Postal Service) module works just fine so I think it is something with the UPS module or its setup. I've gone through the configuration of the module a couple of times and can't see anything wrong. However, I'm thinking that I may be setting something up incorrectly, although I can't seem to find any incorrect settings.

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

Frank

[Fabien Serny]

Hi,

 

I'm the developer of the modules UPS and USPS.

What option did you choose in your UPS module : Split one product / one package or All product in one package ?

 

Best regards,

[papafrankc]

Fabien,

 

Thanks for replying to my problem.

I have used both settings. All items in one package and split one item per package

I am receiving the same charges for both settings. One interesting note, when I first set up the UPS module some days ago I received some numbers that were quite a bit higher than the UPS website, so I changed this setting from Split to All and the numbers came back a little LOWER than the UPS website. Since they were a lot closer to the actual numbers I left that setting and went on to finish setting up my site. Then yesterday I noticed that the numbers were coming in higher again. So I tried changing the Split/All setting and now it has no effect.

 

Here's my test info:

From zip code: 86336

To zip code: 12901

Weight: 20 lbs

 

Price from prestashop: $100.29

Price from UPS website: $33.22

 

Note: the USPS module returns the correct charges.

 

I have the feeling that I am not setting something up correctly, however I have tried everything I can think of.

 

Thanks

Frank

[enigma32]

Hi, I'd been tackling some of these issues myself and sending changes over to Fabien. I can't confirm my own UPS rates because I have negotiated rates that won't reflect in my API until monday..

 

One issue that comes to mind is the size of the package which caused SIGNIFICANT price differences as you stated. If you are capable of doing so, can you open up /modules/upscarrier/upscarrier.php and look for these lines (or similar, since my numbers here are changed for said reason)

 

'width' => ($width > 0 ? $width : 7),

'height' => ($height > 0 ? $height : 3),

'depth' => ($depth > 0 ? $depth : 5),

 

The module had set them to 10x10x10 by default, which for me is much much bigger than my packages are, and UPS.com uses different defaults as well so the numbers never match..

[papafrankc]

Thanks for the input. I took a look inside upscarrier.php and I see quite a few references to "width". I'm a little hesitant to try to modify this file because it is one of the core Prestashop files and might get overwritten on an upgrade. Also my php skills are very limited. I'm new to Prestashop so please forgive me if I am not understanding some of its workings. I also think that the UPS module should work without having to be modified.

 

I did do some more experimenting today. In the UPS Configuration I assigned the package setting to my 'Categories' and a couple of products in my Home category. It changed the UPS pricing. For the products inside Categories it lowered the prices considerably. Actually now they are LOWER than the UPS web site by a few dollars. However the products that are not in a Category are still at the 3 times + pricing. Very strange.

 

Also I tried changing the Packaging from 'Package' to UNKNOWN, just as a test and it would not accept UNKNOWN even though it is one of the choices in the drop down box.

 

Maybe Fabien will have some thoughts.

Thanks

Frank

[papafrankc]

I did some more experimenting with the UPS module. Here's what I found:

 

- The charges seem to be influenced by the SIZE settings on the INFO page of each product.

So far I have been entering the sizes for each product on the INFO page.

 

However I have a product that has 3 different sizes so I did NOT enter any sizes for this product on the INFO page.

The Prestashop UPS charges came back correct! Yeah...almost. However I noticed when checking the UPS website that the prices on Prestashop were correct only when I checked a COMMERCIAL receiving location on the UPS website. When I changed it to RESIDENTIAL the prices on the UPS website were HIGHER - from about 3% to 15% higher. Most of my shipments will be going to a RESIDENTIAL location so I need the prices to be correct for this type of location.

 

- Question: if I leave the SIZES out of the product INFO page will it affect anything else in Prestashop?

- Also: however that still leaves the difference in pricing between RESIDENTIAL and COMMERCIAL?

- I'm wondering if there are any specific setup instructions that might address these issues?

 

- I also noticed that when I check a shipping cost on the UPS website using "Quick Time and Cost (Package), that it does NOT ask me for the package dimensions........only the WEIGHT. However as I mentioned it returns the shipping charges based on shipping to a COMMERCIAL location.

 

- When I use the UPS shipping calculator - "Detailed Time and Cost" that it does require me to input the package sizes. Then the returned shipping charges are different. CONFUSING.... It looks like there are a lot of variables to be considered when trying to ship via UPS.

 

Thanks

Frank

[papafrankc]

I've been doing some more testing of the UPS and USPS modules in Prestashop 1.4.3

 

Now I'm seeing incorrect pricing for the USPS(USA Post Office) module.

I ran 2 tests to calculate shipping charges on the USPS web site:

Test 1 - I used Select shape = PACKAGE (this size is limited to 12" x 12" x 12" or less)

Test 2 - I used Select shape = LARGE PACKAGE (this is for any side greater than 12")

 

Here's my test info and results:

Prestashop: my product (package) is set at:

Size: 48" wide x 12" high x 24" deep.

Weight: 20 lbs

 

Results:

Prestashop shipping charges at checkout: Parcel Post: $25.51

USPS costs for Test 1 (PACKAGE) Parcel Post - $25.51

USPS costs for Test 2 (LARGE PACKAGE) Parcel Post- $107.16

 

Conclusion: - USPS returns 2 different prices depending on the package size. Prestashop only returns

one price - the lower price.

- If I were to take this package to the USPS they would charge me the higher amount

because of the size of the package. So if I had only charged my customer the "Prestashop"

price then I would lose $81.65.

- It appears that Prestashop shipping charges are ONLY correct for packages 12" x 12" x 12"

or less.

 

Almost all of my packages will fall into the LARGE PACKAGE category so to me this is a serious problem.

I will submit this as a bug report.

 

Thanks

Frank

[enigma32]

Well the unfortunate answer is if you don't want to get your hands a little dirty, they're not going to work. The modules that "shipped" with prestashop 1.4 were basically untested fresh code. I know my own changes to the modules weren't included until the newly shipped 1.4.4.. The shipping modules should probably be labeled as beta version really. You're going to want atleast the newest shipping modules from 1.4.4

 

Anyhow, yes if there are no dimensions being passed to the modules via the products' settings, it will default to 10"x10"x10". Variations in package size can make for a drasting price difference with UPS. When testing you definately don't want to use the "quick" option since the box size can vary the price $2-100 basically. I've noticed even the date of shipping returns different results.. I was testing on saturday (which we dont ship saturday orders until monday) and if i put monday suddenly it was $6 cheaper for ground. Makes no sense...

[Fabien Serny]

Hi papafrankc,

 

I'll try to work on this today or tomorrow and update this as soon as possible. Do not worry, we will make it work.

 

 

Hi enigma32,

 

The module was tested and was working when I developped it. I did not have access to rates to compare when I developped the module (in fact, I did not know there was an online emulator), I do not use UPS much here, and some USA merchants told me the module was working fine, it's why I did not update it until you told me that there was a problem.

 

USPS is working fine, I'll try to make UPS module works as good as USPS

Again, thanks for your help on these modules.

[papafrankc]

The UPS module that I reported the pricing problems on was in 1.4.3

 

Now I have upgraded to 1.4.4 and the UPS module doesn't work at all. I have been resetting, configuring, and reinstalling the module for the past few hours.

 

Only one time did I get any shipping charges. After I had changed the "all items in one package" to "split one item per package".

 

Then I went back to Carriers and uploaded a 64x64 UPS logo image to each option so the image will not be so large. Then it stopped working altogether again.

 

Now no matter what options I try I can't get it to show shipping charges again.

 

Any thoughts will be appreciated.

[mr.book]

Hi, I'd been tackling some of these issues myself and sending changes over to Fabien. I can't confirm my own UPS rates because I have negotiated rates that won't reflect in my API until monday..

[webcrafter]

When adding package dimensions, width, height, Depth, Weight.....is length the same as depth? I am importing form a distributors csv file and they have length and cubic in...was just making sure that I was thinking right by thinking according to the shipping modules that length would represent depth as Prestashop sees it?

[Fabien Serny]

Hi papafrankc,

 

Your problem is normal. When you update a carrier (to change the picture for example), it changes his id_carrier, so UPS module can't recognize and the module stop to work. I will think how I can change this but it's not simple.

 

Hi webcrafter,

 

Depth is lenght. I think I will rename it.

[papafrankc]

Fabien,

 

Since I first started this thread, I have recently been able to get the UPS module working. However the prices are not correct when compared to the UPS web site.

 

I'm sorry, I should have updated this thread earlier. Anyway here's the info as to how it is working on my site.

 

2 lbs from 86336 (AZ) to 12901 (NY)

UPS Prestashop Difference

Ground: 13.82 12.15 -1.67

2 nd day air: 42.08 39.93 -2.15

next day air: 82.50 80.35 -2.15

 

The interesting thing is that the dollar difference amounts above are always the same no matter where the destination is OR what the weight is. The differences are always 1.67 and 2.15.

 

For my usage that amount is not really too significant so I have left the UPS module installed.

 

Yes, I am using the UPS 64 x 64 image for the icon when checking out. The one that comes with the module is way too large so I modified it to the smaller size.

 

It may be possible that the changing of the image size has affected the carrier ID, and that might be what is causing the price differentials. I'll try to test it sometime.

 

Frank

[webcrafter]

Thank you very much, I was pretty sure that is what it was but wanted to be sure. Much appreciated.

 

Brad

 

Hi papafrankc,

 

Your problem is normal. When you update a carrier (to change the picture for example), it changes his id_carrier, so UPS module can't recognize and the module stop to work. I will think how I can change this but it's not simple.

 

Hi webcrafter,

 

Depth is lenght. I think I will rename it.

[andriesinfoserv]

installed the latest versions of ups and usps from svn and they seem to be working great. congratulations! I want my shipping options in a particular order. Will the module recognize carriers properly if i change there id's in phpmyadmin to the order i want them in or will they just disappear from cart? or do i need to change the pictures of the carriers in a particular order as a work around way to order them? i hope by 1.5 final admins can order there carriers' appearance in cart if not.

[nestawr]

Has this been fixed?

Edited July 23, 2012 by wcousin (see edit history)

[devilsown]

I switched to the prestochangeo modual http://www.presto-changeo.com/en/10-shipping-modules and i found it to be worth the money while the stock moduals get ironed out. Loosing 3-4 orders the 75 dollar for it willl pay for it self quick. Fabien been working hard on it but its just not there yet.

[Fabien Serny]

Hi all,

 

I just updated the module fedex which seems (according to the merchants who test it) to work great.

Next step, I will work on UPS and USPS next week, if you want to test the beta release of the module during the week do not hesitate to contact me.

 

Sorry for the delay, I am working on a lot of modules at the same time and it is sometimes hard to make the priority.

 

Best regards,

[nestawr]

I switched to the prestochangeo modual http://www.presto-ch...hipping-modules and i found it to be worth the money while the stock moduals get ironed out. Loosing 3-4 orders the 75 dollar for it willl pay for it self quick. Fabien been working hard on it but its just not there yet.

 

Your module looks like it might work but I'm concerned because I have a custom theme for my store. I'll give it a shot since the other module doesn't work right.

[nestawr]

 

Your module looks like it might work but I'm concerned because I have a custom theme for my store. I'll give it a shot since the other module doesn't work right.

I switched to the prestochangeo modual http://www.presto-ch...hipping-modules and i found it to be worth the money while the stock moduals get ironed out. Loosing 3-4 orders the 75 dollar for it willl pay for it self quick. Fabien been working hard on it but its just not there yet.

 

Okay...I bought that module and it works great. The one thing that I think it could use is to be able to set certain box amounts for different items. My worries are over now that I found a UPS module that actually works. Thanks devilsown.

 

Cheers!

[devilsown]

No problem, It was a well worth the money for me also. I know he is working on a new upgrade for it. So keep your eyes open. I like it when people are always trying to improve what they are doing.

[John W]

I'm kind of surprised that dimensional weight and a packing/packaging solution doesn't exist in the base modules. If there were a packing module that could pass box count, sizes, etc... to shipping modules then that would be of value to many people with different shippers. Basically, a packing module to select the best box or boxes for packing smaller/loose items and also add products that ship in their own box. Then it could pass the box data to FedEx, UPS, etc...

 

I started looking at Prestashop 2 years ago and shipping modules in particular FedEx and UPS is one of the main reasons I held off Prestashop. My problem is I ship a lot of oversize items plus a lot of loose items that need to be efficiently quoted for shipping. I would have thought by now it would be more of an issue but other carts have directly addressed it either.

 

There's a company/website called Solvingmaze that has made some modules for other carts I've seen but they keep the packing routine done thought their API so you need them to make it work. They do have some cool 3d demos of the packing routine though.

[Fabien Serny]

Hi John W,

 

The fedex module has been updated not a long ago, tell me if it works better for you.

I am currently working on a new version of UPS module. Would you be interested by testing it and tell me if it's okay for you ?

[vizionseo]

Any luck on the new UPS module for API negotiated rates?

 

I am so frustrated and have spent so much time with my developer and UPS support and thought that it was something that we did not do correctly and come to find out it was Prestashop built in module itself. Why is this not mention in the module itself? Very bad business and support for notifying users and deploying a bad module with defects.

[John W]

vizionseo, I'm probably wasting my time but what were you trying to accomplish with your post? I'm not sure where to begin, but I believe part of your complaint is covered in the Prestashop license for the free software they provide to you for free, no cost, none at all. Personally, I donated $75 to Prestashop 2 years ago because I thought there was a lot of potentional with great momemtum. I think the team has accomplished a lot since then. There are many thousands of user posts like yours across open source software complaining (sometimes rudely) that the FREE software is not good enough.

 

At least in the US, UPS really only gives negotiated rates to pretty large companies.

[John W]

Hi Fabien,

 

Sorry for the late reply, but the busy season got in the way. I'll set up a test site to thoughly test both modules over the next week.

[tomerg3]

vizionseo: If you are pressed with time, have a look at http://www.prestashop.com/forums/index.php?/topic/74017-module-ups-get-real-time-shipping-rates-from-ups-with-shipping-preview-on-the-product-page/ the module has full support for negotiated rates and may more great features.

[Fabien Serny]

Very bad business and support for notifying users and deploying a bad module with defects.

 

Hi vizionseo,

 

UPS API provide many options such as negociated rates. It does not mean the module is bad or do not work. I developed this module and it is provided for free. I'm working on a lot of others core features in PrestaShop that I think you're using every day. I think you can understand that we can't develop have all options provided by the differents APIs just by snapping our fingers. It takes time, and negociated rates is not priotary considering PrestaShop 1.5 we are working on

 

If you are in a hurry, the module of PrestoChangeo is very complete and will provide you options and features that we probably won't develop. So if the native module does not correspond to your need, I think you should take his module (it works very well for what I heard )

 

@JohnW Thanks for your support and help

I'm waiting for your answer.

 

@tomerg3, nice module

[ogil0018]

I am setting up the UPS module and I noticed I do not see all of the shipping methods when I enter an address from the states.

 

Natick, Massachusetts 01760 = only 3 day select

Ottawa Ontario K1J 6C2 = UPS Express Saver and UPS Expedited

 

In the back office I have 3 UPS carries enabled.

 

3 day select

Express Saver

Expedited

[divinus]

If someone needs that module upscarrier with negotiation rates option just download that zip file

 

http://www(dot)divnet(dot)pl/upscarrier(dot)zip

[manolia]

I've modified upscarrier.php with divinus'example. It's work fine but I have ups price only after client connection, before it's free...

 

Any solution ???

[egoruk]

Hi,

 

I seems can't get the UPS module to return any rates in to the "

Fees by carrier, geographical zone, and ranges

" and had to actually manually enter prices there by guessing. Does it even suppose to fill those prices there?

 

I also not sure what kind of Pickup Type I need to enter if I just wanna take shipment to the UPS store myself.

 

And one more thing. When I click to get my UPS API key it always take me to Singapore UPS site. Is it on purpose? Could it be a problem why I'm not getting the prices? Though I actually now manually switched to Canada UPS site and requested another API key but it still did not fix the problem.

 

 

Also, Packaging Weight and Handling Fees - do I come up with those or are they suppose to be also set by using an API key?

 

Thank you in advance!

Edited February 23, 2013 by egoruk (see edit history)

[RescueDog]

And one more thing. When I click to get my UPS API key it always take me to Singapore UPS site. Is it on purpose? Could it be a problem why I'm not getting the prices?

 

Thank you in advance!

 

 

Same issue here - I'm unable to apply for the API key - it keeps modifying my address to Singapore and will not allow me to edit.

 

Any guidance?

Thanks!

 

************* MY ISSUE WAS IN USING A CHROME BROWSER!! SWITCHED TO FF AND WORKED!

Edited March 22, 2013 by topaward (see edit history)

[dereknoyes]

hi fabian (and anyone who can help me),

 

my site is currently in development (ver 1.5) any looking to launch may 1st. i am at the stage of setting up shipping with UPS. the module (ver 1.2.4) is loaded and API configuration went well. The problem i am having has been previously mentioned in this thread.

 

the cart shipping amounts are very different from the ups website. and dont seem to respond to the weight defined in the product.

 

example:

 

test 1

MD (21015) to MD (21215)

1 LB weight (set in product)

 

shopping cart - 15.53

ups site - 8.61

 

test 2

MD (21015) to MD (21215)

80 LB weight (set in product)

 

shopping cart - 15.53

ups site - 49.66

 

i have spent hours looking for good documentation on setting up and more importantly CONFIGURING ups shipping in prestashop and have been unsuccessful. can u point me in the right direction. at launch, ups is the only carrier i want to offer.

 

my products will be shipped in:

 

8x8x8 box

10x10x10 box

12x12x12

16x16x16

blisterpacks

 

the weight will vary between different sizes of products

 

i thought i would be weighing all my combinations of products and entering that weight in each respective product. i assumed that when customer added an item to the cart the shipping module api would sent that weight info and zipcode to ups and come back with a price for all the enabled ups services. is this a correct assumption? do i have to define weight ranges in the fees section or does the api automatically do this? please advise as i have really lost 2 days as of this post trying to configure this shipping.

 

thank you in advance for your help.

[tomerg3]

You can try out our UPS module, it has the option to define the boxes you use to ship, and the module will automatically detect how many boxes / what size are needed to fit the products in your cart.

 

It also support label printing, and a shipping preview without have to login.

 

See http://www.prestashop.com/forums/index.php?/topic/74017-module-ups-get-real-time-rates-from-ups-label-printing-shipping-preview-on-the-product-page/

[gilsimjo]

Hello

 

I have setup this module and aparently everything is OK, the problem is that when I try to generate the shipping label, I get the next error "The XML document is well formed but the document is not valid" I have filled the product features and the shipping features from the product, and I still get the error.

 

Can anybody help me please???? I don't know what else do I have to do and I can't resolve my problem. I have placed a question to UPS and they ask me for the xml file, but I don't know how can I get it.

 

I attached 4 files with the module configuration, the features and shipping fields and also my error screenshot.

 

Any help would be great, I'm desesperated!!!

 

Imágenes.zip

[tomerg3]

IF you are having issues with our module, please use https://www.presto-changeo.com/en/contact_us

[goldenegg]

Hi - I've set up my shipping for one of my item categories for a USPS Priority Mail Small flat rate box.  The rate from USPS is normally $5.75 for a Small flat rate box.

$5.75  

Priority Mail®
Flat Rate Envelope

12-1/2" x 9-1/2"

But it's coming up always as $9.75:

Priority Mail (1-3 days)

Priority Mail (1-3 days)

The best price and speed

US$ 9.75

How can this be fixed?  

Is PrestaShop pulling up higher rates than USPS rates, or what ???