The Late Shipment Rate is a Seller Performance Standard that tracks the percentage of your self-fulfilled orders not handed off to the carrier by the Expected Ship Date. In this guide, you’ll learn how the Late Shipment Rate is calculated and how it can help you improve your performance.
If you use Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS), most performance metrics will be met for you, including the Late Shipment Rate.
What is the policy?
To be compliant, orders must be shipped on or before the Expected Ship Date. Maintaining a low Late Shipment Rate helps to ensure customers receive their orders as expected. A high Late Shipment Rate can indicate issues with timely carrier handovers, delayed shipments or delays in initial carrier scans, which can negatively impact the customer experience and your performance metrics.
Frequently monitor your Late Shipment Rate from the Performance dashboard in Seller Center and ensure you maintain a Late Shipment Rate at or below 5%.
If an order is marked as Shipped in Seller Center after the Expected Ship Date, it’s always considered late—even if the carrier scan occurs quickly.
Additional guidelines
The table below lists the Late Shipment Rate performance drivers and offers suggestions for making improvements.
Driver | Definition | Recommendations |
|---|---|---|
Marked as Shipped late | Orders that are marked as Shipped in Seller Center after the Expected Ship Date. |
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Late carrier handover | Shipments that receive their first carrier scan after the Expected Ship Date. |
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Missing or invalid scan | Orders where the carrier's first scan is missing or invalid, preventing shipment verification. |
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