Shipping Alcohol With Usps Ups And Fedex
Alcohol can be a tricky thing to ship. Different carriers have different rules. So well cover three of the major carriers that youre most likely to use: USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
USPS
There is absolutely no alcohol allowed for any USPS shipment, domestically or internationally.
On top of this, if you plan on using packaging that was once used to carry alcohol, all labels or branding associated with alcohol must be covered or taken off in order to properly process the package. Otherwise, USPS will assume there’s alcohol inside the package and reject it.
UPS
UPS does allow the shipment of alcohol with a few caveats.
- You must have an account number with UPS
- You must come to an alcohol shipping agreement with UPS
- You must have a license to ship alcohol according to federal and state laws.
- You must abide by the alcohol regulations of the origin state AND the destination state.
- You must use proper packaging:
- Inner packaging of EPS foam, folded corrugated tray, or molded fiber tray
- Each packaging component must secure the bottle to the center of the container, away from the side walls of the container.
- Container must be sturdy
FedEx
FedEx also allows the shipment of alcohol with a few caveats:
How To Mail Alcohol Out
When you cross state lines, the shipment of alcohol becomes more difficult. That its because you now must meet the requirements and regulations in both the state youre shipping from and the state youre shipping to.
There is a loophole that helps consumers ship beer, liquor, and wine to other states if that other state permits the shipment of alcohol to consumers. Instead of shipping a bottle from your state to their state, simply find a retailer based in the state youre shipping to and order it from that retailer. That way the retailer wont need to cross state lines and only meet the rules of their states alcohol regulation board.
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How Do I Ship A Package For Alcohol
Tightly wrap each individual bottle and six-pack before you get to your shipping store. As a guideline, you will want approximately two inches of bubble wrap encasing the beer. You’ll also need a sturdy, corrugated, shipping box and a garbage bag. Do not use one of those lightweight cardboard box people use to move.
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Who Can Ship Alcohol And To Whom
Overview
Only FedEx-approved, licensed alcohol shippers that have entered into a FedEx Alcohol Shipping Agreement may ship alcohol via FedEx services. Consumers may not ship alcohol of any type via FedEx services.
Licensee-to-licensee in the U.S.
The shipper must be a FedEx-approved alcohol shipper, the recipient must be a business entity that holds appropriate alcohol licenses, and the shipment must otherwise comply with applicable laws. Shipments can move via FedEx Express®, FedEx Ground®, or FedEx Home Delivery® services.
Licensee-to-consumer in the U.S.
FedEx only transports wine licensee-to-consumer. Direct-to-consumer wine shipments are limited to the destination states outlined in the Direct-to-Consumer Reference Guide and must otherwise comply with applicable law.
Licensee or consumer designation in FedEx automation*
Shippers are required to use updated versions of FedEx automation for shipments containing alcohol. In doing so, FedEx requires shippers to designate whether an alcohol shipment is intended for a “Licensee” or a “Consumer”.
Shippers should select the “Consumer” designation for wine shipped directly to an individual consumer for personal consumption regardless of whether the shipment is destined for a residential or commercial address. All shipments designated as “Consumer” shipments must comply with all applicable laws and regulations.
Licensee-to-licensee internationally
Both the importer and exporter must be licensed entities.
How To Pack Alcohol For Shipping
Due to bottle shock in wine, alcohol requires a more advanced packaging approach than other products. You want to prevent oxidized wine at all costs, especially when sending wine long distances. Here is how to pack alcohol for shipping, whether youâre sending one bottle of wine or a case of beer:
If itâs your first time standardizing a packaging process for alcoholic beverages, write down your version of the steps above. Then print it out, laminate it, and give it to your warehousing staff. This will save time and effort, especially during busy seasons.
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Fedex Shipping Liquid Rules
Merchants are able to ship liquids through FedEx and can find a detailed policy explanation and a step-by-step packing guide on their website.
To ensure your package is accepted for shipment:
- Use a waterproof, sealable primary container.
- Pad the empty spaces of additional containers so that they dont touch each other – the materials should also be absorbant to contain any leakage.
- Ensure the bottles are placed upright .
- The final, outer container should be able to contain any potential leakage.
Why Does It Cost So Much To Ship Wine
There are many reasons why it costs a lot to ship wine. Here are a bunch that are determined by the shipper:
There are additional costs associated with shipping for the company selling you the wine:
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Which States Allow Direct Shipments Of Wine From Wineries
- https://freethegrapes.org/find-your-state/
- Does your home state allow or ban interstate retailer-to-consumer wine shipments? Find out by viewing the map below and choosing a state from the dropdown above for more information or to take action and help us improve consumer choice in wine in your state.
How Much Does A Case Of Wine Weigh
A case of wine weighs 40 to 50 pounds. Each bottle of wine weights 3 to 4 pounds and there are twelve bottles in a case. The packing materials and box contribute to the weight, too.
While the wine inside a bottle always weighs roughly the same amount, the weight of the actual bottles can vary greatly.When a winery chooses their wine bottles, one of their considerations is how heavy the bottles themselves are.They may choose heavy bottles because it creates a more impressive experience. The unfortunate side effect of thatis it costs more to ship those heavier bottles.
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Can You Mail Alcohol
The United States Postal Service prohibits sending alcoholic beverages through the mail, but you can ship alcohol via couriers, such as FedEx or UPS if youre a licensed alcohol shipper.
The laws around shipping liquor in the US are quite complicated, so if youre considering setting up a business that ships alcohol, either within the US or internationally from the US, you should do plenty of research first.
FedEx and UPS have strict procedures for shipping alcohol and both require you to enter into an official Alcohol Shipping Agreement to use their services. There may be different shipping agreements required, depending on whether youre shipping wine, beer or liquor and there are numerous restrictions on retailer to consumer shipments, including which US states youre allowed to send consumer shipments to.
What About Fedex Dhl And Ups
Because there are so many special requirements to mail them, not all couriers accept liquids for shipping. And, if they do, theyll usually have a strict policy that must be carefully adhered to. Each courier has its own set of distinctive rules and regulations, many of which may differ by region, too.
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Does Dhl Ship Alcohol
If you are sending alcohol through DHL Express, your package will be picked up only if you are a licensed producer or wholesaler of alcohol. You also need to be approved to ship by DHL.
Mailing wine as a gift isn’t technically legal anywhere in the United States, as it’s illegal to send alcohol in any form through the U.S. mail. The USPS prohibits the mailing of alcohol, either domestically or to foreign countries. Wine must be shipped through commercial carriers.
How Do I Ship A Bottle Of Wine
Shipping Carriers for Wine Mailing wine as a gift isn’t technically legal anywhere in the United States, as it’s illegal to send alcohol in any form through the U.S. mail. The USPS prohibits the mailing of alcohol, either domestically or to foreign countries. Wine must be shipped through commercial carriers.
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What Are The Requirements For Licensed Wine Retailers To Ship Wine Via Ups
Contractual Service Only
- The UPS Agreement for Approved Wine Shippers
- The UPS Wine Industry Fulfillment House Agreement For Approved Wine Shippers
UPS does not accept shipments of wine from shippers who have not entered into one of the above-mentioned agreements.
Shipping Solution Requirements
The shipper must process the wine shipment with a UPS Compatible Shipping solution such as WorldShip or any approved third-party vendor system.
Packaging Requirements
All shipments must meet UPS packaging requirements for wine.
UPS will accept the inner packaging of molded Expanded Polystyrene foam, folded corrugated tray, or molded fiber tray. Each packaging component secures the bottles into the center of the shipping container away from the side walls of the shipper. Outer corrugated containers are required to be sturdy.
Adult Signature Required upon delivery
All wine shipments must be made using the UPS Delivery Confirmation Adult Signature Required service, requiring the signature of an adult 21 years of age or older upon delivery.
US Domestic Shipments will require a Wine Shipping Label
All packages containing wine must be labeled by the shipper with a special alcoholic beverage shipping label in addition to any other labeling that may be required by the origin or destination state.
Is It Legal To Ship Wine Across State Lines
In short, yes. In 2005, the Supreme Court ruled that states allowing in-state wineries to ship bottles DTC cannot prohibit out-of-state wineries from DTC shipping. Thus, states allowing in-state shipping from wineries must also allow interstate shipping from wineries, making DTC shipping much easier for wineries.
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How To Pack Liquids For Shipping
Alcoholic beverages often come in glass bottles which are significantly more delicate than their plastic counterparts. For this reason, you need to be especially careful when you are shipping glass wine bottles, beer bottles, or liquor bottles, or shipping liquids in other delicate containers.
To safely ship alcoholic beverages, you should use strong cardboard boxes that have trays inside of them that provide sections for each bottle.
This will keep the bottles separate and prevent them from smashing into one another. You can also wrap the bottles in bubble wrap for additional safety. You may want to do this if you are shipping very expensive wine.
After that, you can put packing peanuts into the box and then close the top of the box and tape it shut. Then carefully stack the boxes into the truck.
How To Legally Ship Alcohol Products Via Fedex
Items like clothing materials, toys, books, and electronic products can be easily shipped with FedEx, with almost no restriction. Although youre allowed to ship most items with FedEx, there are a few that require special permission. For instance, to ship alcohol items, you need to follow certain strict guidelines provided by FedEx. You have to fulfill their requirements and fill up necessary forms to ship spirits, wine bottles, or any other alcoholic items.
This guide will help you uncover the mysteries surrounding alcohol-shipping. You will find the necessary steps and information which would help you ship alcohol items to your customers legally. You will see how you could automatically create shipping labels for your alcohol shipments.
We will also introduce you to two e-commerce shipping solutions WooCommerce Shipping plugin for FedEx and Shopify Ship, Rate and Track for FedEx. They have built-in features that allow you to ship alcohol directly from your online store. So, read more and get to know about them.
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Is It Legal To Mail Alcohol
There isnt a universal answer to this question, as it depends on the laws and regulations in each state, city, and county that both the seller and buyer are located in.
Why is that? When Prohibition ended with the 21st Amendment, it gave states the power to regulate and set their own laws on the sale of alcoholic beverages in their states.
There are some universal rules for shipping alcohol that include:
- Alerting the carrier that a shipment contains alcohol
- Paying a special alcohol package fee
- An adult that is 21 or older must sign for the package
How To Ship Wine Through The Mail
With the holidays fast approaching, many people aged 21 and older are getting ready to put down their kale smoothies and pick up the bottle of vino. Thats right between Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Eve, drinking season is upon us. Since its also a time of gift-giving, many more will try to navigate the labyrinth of rules that govern how to ship wine through the mail.
For a country built by booze-loving colonials who in large part believed, Alcohol could cure the sick, strengthen the weak, enliven the aged, and generally make the world a better place, we Americans sure do make it complicated to ship wine to one another.
If you are ready to take up the challenge, heres what you need to know.
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Can Wine Be Shipped For Free
You have a few options if you want to send wine to someone but hate paying for shipping.
Dhl Shipping Liquid Rules
This German carrier generally wont transport dangerous products such as aerosols, eau de toilettes, perfumes, and aftershaves. However, you can send items containing alcohol locally in most countries – and if you want to use DHL to send these within European countries, you will have to do it in line with the regulations of the destination country.
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Can You Ship Wine Via Fedex Or Ups
Thats right: dont even think about heading to your closest FedEx or a UPS with a bottle of wine or a specialty spirit unless you carry a proper license to manufacture, sell, distribute, or otherwise import alcohol. You must advise the carrier your package contains alcohol. A surcharge will be applied to the shipment.
How To Ship Alcohol
If youâre wondering, âCan I sell alcohol online?â The answer is yes. Online alcohol sales is a growing market, expanding by 8.4% for the last five years and counting.
As long as you have the appropriate licenses, products consumers love to buy, and the means to ship them, youâre in good shape. The first step is to create a storefront with BlueCart eCommerce or another eCommerce website builder.
Next, itâs time to master shipping and handling, so you arenât scrambling to figure it out after your first few sales. We pulled together the essential steps on how to ship alcohol so you can apply them right away.
Keep reading for tips on how to legally and effectively mail alcohol from point A to point B.
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Can You Bring Wine On A Plane
Like all liquids, it’s subject to the TSA’s 3-1-1 rule for carry-ons, which means you can’t pack bottles that are larger than 3.4 ounces, plus they must all fit into a single 1-quart bag. The only way to bring a full bottle of wine into the cabin of a plane is to buy it after you clear airport security.
Shipping Perishable Food And Wine/alcohol Using Woocommerce Ups Shipping Plugin
While shipping perishable food and wine with WooCommerce, you would require the WooCommerce UPS Shipping Plugin to complete the task for you. Unfortunately, since WooCommerce does not provide a solution for shipping Perishable Food and Wine/Alcohol stand alone, the WooCommerce UPS Shipping Plugin grants the user the ability to display live shipping rates based on the origin and destination and the dimensions and weight of the package, it also gives you the ability to generate and print shipping labels, track shipments, ship dangerous/hazardous materials as well as shipping Perishable food and Wine/Alcohol.
Remember: In order to be able to configure Alcoholic Beverages for shipping using WooCommerce UPS Shipping Plugin, you will have to first sign an agreement with UPS. Upon doing so, the plugin will automatically provide the user with the service availability. If you are a contract customer, then make sure you enter the right account details while setting up the plugin.
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