1. What Is Your on-Time Percentage, & How Do You Measure It?
Good: a figure with a definition and a source. Bad: a figure with neither.
2. Who Is My Named Backup Courier, and Has That Person Run My Route? Good: two names. Bad: "we always have coverage."
3. Walk Me Through What Happens When a Pickup Fails. Good: a sequence with clocks in it. Bad: "we'd let you know."
4. Show Me a Real Excursion Report You've Issued. Good: a redacted document. Bad: a description of their process.
5. Can You Produce Training Records for the Couriers on My Account, and How Fast? Good: yes, with a mechanism. Bad: "all our drivers are trained."
6. Who Answers at 3 a.m., and What's the Escalation Clock? Good: staffed dispatch, automatic escalation at a stated interval, a named contact. Bad: "we're 24/7."
7. Are Your Couriers Employees or Contractors, and How Are They Qualified Either Way? Good: a direct answer and a stated standard. Bad: evasion. The model matters less than the honesty.
8. What's Your Turnover on Routed Accounts? Good: a number, given without hesitation. Bad: a pause.
9. What Happens If Your Dispatch Software Goes Down? Good: a manual fallback they've used. Bad: "that doesn't happen."
10. What Are Your Insurance Limits, and What's Your COI Turnaround? Good: specific limits and a specific turnaround. Bad: "we're fully insured."
11. What's on the Invoice That Isn't in the Quote? Good: an itemized list, or a redacted sample invoice. Bad: "nothing."
12. If We Leave, Do We Get Our Route Documentation? Good: yes. Bad: anything else.