Floor Loading Policy

While it is one of the most labor-intensive types of loading, you may not be able to avoid Floor Loading your products when shipping Less than Truckload (LTL), Full Truckload (FTL), or Full Container Load (FCL) deliveries to Amazon fulfillment centers.

When loading packed products directly on the floor, rather than using pallets or other containers, it takes longer for the fulfillment centers to process, which may impact your products availability for sale on Amazon and unload times. Carriers may also apply additional charges if your shipments require extensive handling.

Important: Failure to comply with FBA product preparation requirements, safety requirements, and product restrictions may result in the refusal of inventory at the Amazon fulfillment center, disposal or return of inventory, blocking of future shipments to the fulfillment center, or charging for preparation or for noncompliance at the fulfillment center. Please share these requirements with your carrier or vendor to ensure that they fully understand these requirements.

Floor loading requirements

Palletize all shipments as much as possible to ensure earlier delivery appointments. Floor-loaded shipments requiring extensive handling may be refused for safety reasons (i.e. boxes greater than 50.0 pounds). By definition, Amazon considers floor loading to be loose, stacked boxes, which are under 50.0 pounds in weight that will be unloaded by hand. Any additional charges assessed by your carrier would vary based on the extra time and labor required, which can vary significantly from shipment to shipment.

You must inform your carrier that floor-loaded shipments are only accepted when they identify them on the Carrier Central.

Note: Remember to follow all box label guidelines for the specific product sent.

Follow these requirements while readying the floor-loaded shipment:

Stack boxes into columns in an alternating pattern to provide stability.
Boxes must not be bundled together with any kind of straps, zip ties, tape, etc.
Maintain at least 7.5 cm between column stacks and container walls.
Stack boxes no higher than 1.6 cm, unless they conform to the slip sheet or clamp truck instructions below.
Make sure that the overall height of the column stack allows 7.5 cm of clearance from the top of the stack to the roof of the container.
Products exceeding 48 inches in length must be loaded along the length of the container or trailer.

Load quality requirements

Correctly staging your floor-loaded shipment will ensure there are no delays in processing your products once at the fulfillment center. Remember to:

All shipments should be properly secured using load bars/straps. It is the shipper's and the carrier's responsibility to ensure that shipments are loaded into a trailer in a manner that prevents the load from shifting during transit. When using Intermodal transportation (COFC), always use a load strap, never a load bar to secure loads.
Floor-loaded freight should only be loaded into containers that are at least 2.4 mts tall and make sure that the overall height of the carton stack allows 7.5 cm of clearance from the top of the stack to the roof of the container.
Ensure that all boxes (regardless of weight) comply with the clamp truck instructions listed below.

Example of a correctly staged floor loaded shipment

Important: If the load quality does not meet Floor Loading policy, your shipment may take longer to receive and you may be contacted about your shipment. Load quality issues may result in charges for unplanned services or refusal of shipments.

Clamp Truck Guidelines

Use these instructions to accommodate forklifts with hydraulic attachments that open and close around a load to squeeze and pick it up:

When loading the trailer, maintain at least 7.5 cm between stacks and between stacks and container walls.
Make sure that the overall height of stack allows 7.5 cm of clearance from the top of the stack to the roof of the container.
Arrange each tier to be uniform and aligned relative to the other tiers on the footprint so that all four sides of the freight stack can be safely accessed and "squeezed" by a clamp truck. Tier heights may vary.
The product must also be oriented in such a manner that it can be clamped without having to rearrange the load.
Use spacers between stacks to prevent them from shifting during transit. All shipments should be properly secured using load bars/straps. It is the shipper's and carrier's responsibility to ensure that shipments are loaded into the trailer in a manner that prevents the load from shifting during transit.
Air pillows, diamond corrugate shims, or dunnage must be used for stability and to maintain the separation between stacks during transit.
Boxes that are considered clampable must be a minimum of 24 inches in width and no longer than 72 inches to be able to accommodate min and max clamp truck restrictions. Clampable boxes must not be forced into a trailer during the load process.
Products must be shrink-wrapped together to prevent insecure loading.

Slip sheet guidelines

When slip sheets are used instead of pallets, be sure to follow these instructions:

Insert slip sheets between the floor and product, as well as between layers. The overall height of the stack should allow 7.5 cm of clearance from the top of the stack to the roof of the container.
Use only slip sheets of industry-standard pallet size (100 cm x 120 cm).
Products exceeding 120 cm in length must be loaded along the length of the container or trailer.

Related guidelines

For additional actions required for LTL, FTL, and FCL deliveries, be sure to review the Seller requirements and Carrier requirements.
For weight, dimension, and shipment packing requirements, review the Shipping and routing requirements.
For smaller shipments, go to Small parcel delivery to Amazon.

Reach hundreds of millions of customers

Start selling on Amazon