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Freightzy issues two Bills of Lading: a dry BOL and a reefer BOL. That is the whole set. Between them they cover every shipment we move - so whatever you are shipping, one of these two documents is the one that travels with your freight and decides what you get billed.
New to Bills of Lading? Our Bill of Lading Master Guide covers what a BOL is, what every field means, and the types that exist.
This page is about the documents in practice: what the two Freightzy BOLs look like, and exactly how to fill each one out correctly, step by step.
Most shippers expect a different Bill of Lading for every service they book - one for LTL, another for truckload, another for intermodal. That is not how it works here, and the simplicity is deliberate.
The dry BOL is the standard document. It covers ambient freight - anything that does not need temperature control - and it is the document behind the large majority of shipments moving through Freightzy.
The reefer BOL is the same document with the cold-chain fields added: the temperature setpoint and range, and the handling requirements that go with refrigerated or frozen freight.
That is the entire set, and it applies across every service. There is no separate BOL for full truckload, intermodal, expedited, or final mile freight - if your shipment is ambient, the dry BOL is your document, and the steps below are your steps. What changes between services is which fields carry the most weight, not which form you use. Our master guide explains that in more detail, as well as our Ultimate FTL Guide.
In LTL freight, your Bill of Lading is what you get billed on. Because your pallets share a trailer with other shippers’ freight, the carrier rates and handles your shipment entirely from what is written on the document - there is no flat per-truck price to fall back on.
Three fields cause most of the pain. If the weight on the BOL does not match the carrier’s scale, you get a reweigh charge. If the freight class is wrong, you get a reclassification and a corrected - usually higher - invoice. And if an accessorial like liftgate or residential delivery is not listed, the carrier still performs it and bills it afterward at a higher rate. None of these are penalties for doing something wrong; they are automatic corrections that happen the moment the paperwork does not match the freight. Everything about LTL freight is also covered in our LTL Freight Shipping in Canada.
That is why the review step below matters more than it looks.
You do not fill out a Freightzy BOL from a blank page. When you book a shipment, the platform generates the Bill of Lading from the quote you already approved - pulling in the shipper and consignee addresses, the commodity description, the weight and dimensions, the freight class and NMFC code, the accessorials you selected, and the rate quote reference. It formats the document to carrier standards and flags fields that are missing or inconsistent before you finalize it.
One detail matters more than shippers expect: the Freightzy BOL carries the rate quote reference that ties your shipment to the price you were quoted. Hand the driver a blank form off the internet instead of the generated BOL and that reference is gone - which means you risk being rebilled at standard rates instead of the rate you booked. On volume LTL shipments especially, using the BOL we generate, with its quote reference intact, is what protects your pricing.
Here is the full process for a standard dry shipment, from quote to printed document. Most of the work is done for you - your job is the review.
Step 1 - Get your quote and book. Enter your freight details once: origin and destination, commodity, weight, dimensions, and any accessorials you need. Freightzy returns rated service options; you pick the one that fits. Everything you enter here flows into the BOL, so accuracy at this stage does most of the work.
Step 2 - Let the BOL generate. As soon as you book, the Bill of Lading is created from that shipment. There is no separate form to complete and nothing to re-key.
Step 3 - Check the shipper and consignee blocks. Confirm both are complete: full legal names, street addresses, and a working contact phone number at each end. Missing consignee contact details are one of the most common causes of delivery delays and reattempt fees.
Step 4 - Check the commodity description. It should say specifically what the freight is and how it is packaged - “Machined steel brackets, boxed and palletized,” not “parts” or “machinery.” Vague descriptions invite carrier inspections and reclassification.
Step 5 - Check the weight, dimensions, freight class, and NMFC. These four decide your bill. Confirm the weight matches what is actually on the pallets, that the dimensions are the real dimensions, and that the class and NMFC code reflect the commodity. If you are unsure how class works, our freight class guide walks through it.
Step 6 - Check the accessorials. Every service the shipment needs - liftgate, residential, appointment, inside delivery - should already be listed from your booking. Anything missing here gets performed anyway and billed afterward at a higher rate.
Step 7 - Confirm the rate quote reference is present. This is the field that ties the shipment to your booked price. It should be on the document before it goes anywhere near the driver.
Step 8 - Add special instructions, then finalize. Anything the driver or dock needs to know - pickup windows, dock numbers, notify-before-delivery - goes in the special instructions. Then finalize the BOL.
The dry example above is a volume LTL shipment. If you are not sure whether your freight is standard or volume LTL, our guide on the difference explains where the line falls.
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Once the BOL is finalized, download it, print it, or email it straight to your warehouse or dock. Print a copy for the driver - the driver signs at pickup, and that signature is what confirms the freight was received in the stated condition.
Freightzy also produces the shipping labels alongside the BOL, formatted for standard Avery 5168 label stock. Print them on the correct stock and attach one to each handling unit so every pallet is identified and routed correctly through the carrier’s network. The BOL describes the shipment; the labels move the individual pieces - you need both.
The reefer BOL follows exactly the same eight steps as the dry BOL. Everything above applies - the same shipper and consignee checks, the same commodity, weight, class, and accessorial review, the same rate quote reference, the same printing process. What follows is the part that is different.
The temperature setpoint and range. This is the field that makes a reefer BOL a reefer BOL. It records the temperature the freight must be held at in transit - in the example above, a frozen shipment running at −10°F. When you book refrigerated freight through Freightzy, the temperature requirement is captured as part of the shipment and lands on the document automatically, rather than being written in by hand at the dock.
Why the temperature field is not a formality. If the temperature is missing or wrong on the BOL and the load arrives out of spec, you have a problem that is bigger than the paperwork: the document is the record of what the carrier agreed to maintain. Without an accurate setpoint on it, a claim for spoiled or thawed freight becomes very hard to substantiate. Check this field every time - it takes five seconds and it is the difference between a claim you can file and one you cannot.
Commodity description for temperature-controlled freight. Be specific about what the freight is and what state it ships in - frozen, chilled, or fresh. “Frozen food product” tells the carrier how to handle it; “food” does not.
Handling and delivery requirements. Reefer shipments often carry appointment requirements, notify-before-delivery, or receiving-window constraints at cold-storage facilities. List them in the accessorials and special instructions so the carrier plans for them rather than discovering them at the door.
Shipping perishable or frozen goods regularly? Our guide on shipping refrigerated freight covers packaging, temperature, and lane planning in depth.
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Most billing surprises trace back to a handful of BOL errors, and the platform is built to catch them before the freight moves. Vague commodity descriptions invite inspections and reclassification - Freightzy carries the description and class through from your quote. Inaccurate weight triggers reweigh charges - the BOL reflects the weight you entered and were rated on. Missing accessorials become after-the-fact fees - the ones you selected are already on the document. Missing temperature details undermine reefer claims - the setpoint is captured at booking. And using a blank form instead of the generated BOL loses the rate quote reference - which is exactly why we hand you the finished document, ready to print.
For a fuller breakdown of BOL mistakes across all freight types, see the common-mistakes section of our BOL master guide.
Two documents, dry and reefer, generated for you from the quote you approved and ready to print - so the paperwork that decides your bill is right before the truck arrives.
Get a free shipping quote and see your BOL built automatically.
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Two: a dry BOL and a reefer BOL. Between them they cover every shipment we move. There is no separate document for different services.
No. If the freight is ambient, the dry BOL is your document - for LTL, full truckload, intermodal, expedited, and final mile alike. What changes between services is which fields matter most, not which form you use. Freight class, for example, drives LTL pricing but does not apply to a full truckload.
The reefer BOL is the dry BOL plus the cold-chain fields: the temperature setpoint and range, and the handling requirements that go with refrigerated or frozen freight. The fill-out process is otherwise identical.
Yes. When you book, Freightzy auto-generates the BOL from your approved quote - pulling the addresses, commodity, weight, freight class, NMFC, accessorials, and rate quote reference - so you are not filling out a form from scratch or re-keying details.
Download or print the BOL directly, or email it to your warehouse or dock. Freightzy also produces labels formatted for standard Avery 5168 label stock - print those and attach one to each handling unit.
You should use the Freightzy-generated BOL. It carries the rate quote reference that ties your shipment to the price you booked. Use a blank form instead and that reference is missing, which means you risk being rebilled at standard rates.
