Wrong account, pricing errors, and unclear freight charges
I used Gemline for a corporate holiday gift order with 53 domestic shipments. My order was initially associated with another business’s account, and I had to follow up repeatedly to get the account corrected, find out how to pay, and confirm that the order was moving forward.
When the original product was out of stock, Gemline offered replacement power banks at the same quoted price of $36.39 per unit. I paid before receiving the itemized invoice, which listed $43.67 per unit. I had to send Gemline its own written quote to challenge the charge. The final invoice reflected the correct unit price, but it took more back-and-forth than it should have.
Freight was the biggest frustration. I was quoted $5 per address for drop shipping, plus postage, but received no freight estimate before the gifts shipped. The final invoice listed $1,854.57 in freight on top of the separate drop-ship fee. For one shipment, Gemline’s report listed $34.19, more than twice the $16.00 UPS Simple Rate estimate I obtained. I understand those rates may differ, but when I asked how Gemline calculated the charges, it said it uses published UPS rates and does not disclose its contracted pricing. I never received a UPS breakdown of the rates and their surcharges applied to my packages. Being told to use my own carrier account next time didn’t explain this bill.
The gifts shipped, but I ended up covering $1,000 out of pocket because I didn’t feel I could justify passing the full freight cost on to my client. After the account mix-up, the pricing correction, and the lack of a clear freight breakdown, I wouldn’t use Gemline for drop shipping again. If you’re a distributor considering it, get an itemized quote and written freight terms before approving the order.