Need info about UPS module

[Craig Hairston]

V1.3.9h
http://www.scplaceonline.com/zen/

We have UPS and USPS modules active.

When the customer specifies, for example, UPS ground and the weight is 2 pounds, ZC provides a cost of $8.48. When we log into our UPS account using published rates for 2 lbs., UPS.com gives us a cost of 11.07.

The UPS tech support person said rates change on the first of every month with fuel surcharges etc. and suggested that the UPS module in ZenCart was old/incorrect, etc. I defended the excellence of Zen Cart and suggested he ..... well I defended Zen Cart.

My question is how does ZC extract the UPS information, why is there a discrepancy, and how do I get the Zen quoted rates close to or the same as the monthly updated rates from UPS?

As always, I appreciate the insights and quality of answers from the ZC experts.

I'm just a newbie wandering deeper into the quicksand.

[RescoCCC]

Zen Cart pulls the info directly from UPS. In other words, the cart doesn't do any calculating. There are some configuration settings that effect the amount returned by UPS, though.

[Craig Hairston]

I saw the variables in admin for UPS shipping module for location , self packing, etc. so can I assume that if those are set properly, those should be the rates? Are there any other admin or programmable variables a ZC installer/admin should be aware of?

Let me clarify, Since ZC is pulling down directly from UPS according to correctly set variables, I think my owner's published rates have some hidden surcharge or he may have not entered something into his UPS.com account properly. I'll be visiting with our local UPS rep tomorrow and I'll show him the difference and see if he can provide some insight. Of course he'll blame the software so I am just trying to mount a strong defense.

I'll keep you posted if/when I find the discrepency and again thanks for the quick reply.

[RescoCCC]

One thing that will effect the rate is which delivery option is selected, ie: Commercial, (COM), or Residential, (RES). If they have COM selected it will return a lower cost. Also pickup vs dropoff effects the rate.

[RescoCCC]

Okay, I just ran a test. From your zip code, 29212, to my zip code, 98032, for a one pound package the cart produces a cost of $9.41. Using the UPS web site it produces a cost of $12.28 for residential and a cost of $9.62 for commercial. So, check that setting.

[Craig Hairston]

You have demonstrated the differnece in price I am showing also.
My UPS settings are RDP, CP, and Res.

The discrepency has me puzzled. Why is ZC showing a better price for the same settings versus using the same settings when inside UPS.com.

I don't like the higher rate shown by UPS.com and the problem is that the customer has paid for the displayed ZC rate, so we eat a few bucks on each order.

I guess it boils down to - am I doing something goofy or is there an actual discrepency from what ZC is pulling down from UPS?

I just would like to get the amounts closer/in sync whatever the actual correct amount is.

Thanks for helping me chase this one down.