Which term describes a shipment that weighs 175 pounds but is rated at 200 pounds?

• A. Deficit weight
• B. Dimensional weight
• C. Actual weight
• D. Chargeable weight

Answer: (A)

Understand that shipments are billed using the weight that’s higher between the actual weight and the dimensional (size-based) weight. Dimensional weight translates the package’s dimensions into a weight figure so that larger boxes can be charged more, even if they’re not very heavy.

In this case, the package actually weighs 175 pounds, but its size yields a rated weight of 200 pounds. The chargeable weight is the greater of the two, so 200 pounds is used to determine the shipping charge. The term deficit weight isn’t a standard shipping term for billing—charges aren’t based on a negative difference. The key idea is that chargeable weight reflects the higher value between actual and dimensional weights.