Outbound Freight Program

Questions? Contact SCM Response Team

Overview

Vantage Point Logistics (VPL) pays FedEx invoices with a BearBuy purchase order (PO).

UCSF partnered with Vantage Point Logistics (VPL) to make it possible to pay FedEx invoices with a BearBuy purchase order (PO). FedEx accounts that were enrolled in the Outbound Freight Program were switched to electronic invoicing through VPL. VPL automatically processes your FedEx invoices and submits electronic invoices through BearBuy to your VPL Outbound Freight PO.

*** Outbound Freight Program Retirement *** The Outbound Freight Program will be retired in 2025. Read more...

Frequently Asked Questions

FedEx Accounts

Q: How do I open a FedEx account?

A: Download the FedEx Government New Account Request Form in UCSF Box, and email the completed form to FedEx at [email protected]. On the form, enter your campus address as the billing address.

Note: The Outbound Freight Program is being retired. No new FedEx accounts can be enrolled in the program. For new FedEx accounts, you will pay invoices with a P-Card or BearBuy Payment Request. Read more...

Q: Is my department required to enroll our FedEx Account in the Outbound Freight Program?

A: No, FedEx invoices can be paid with a P-Card or BearBuy Payment Request (if you don't have a PO). For detailed instructions for paying with a Payment Request, click here.

Note: The Outbound Freight Program is being retired. No more FedEx accounts can be enrolled in the program. If you don't have a PO for your FedEx account, you can pay invoices with a P-Card or BearBuy Payment Request. Read more...

Q: Does each person in my department need their own FedEx Account?

A: No, your department can determine who should use the FedEx Account and share the PO Number with whoever needs to ship packages.

Q: How do I access my fedex.com account?

A: For assistance with your fedex.com account, contact FedEx Technical Support at 1-877-339-2774.

Q: How do I contact FedEx customer service?

A:

  • FedEx Customer Service (tracking, tracing, claims): 1-800-GO-FEDEX (1-800-463-3339)
  • FedEx Government Billing Department: 1-800-645-9424
  • FedEx Technical Support: 1-877-339-2774
  • FedEx International Customer Service: 1-800-247-4747
  • FedEx Government and Education: [email protected]

Purchase Orders

Q: Does my department need to create a new PO for each shipment?

A: No, you'll reference the same PO Number over-and-over again on your shipping labels.

Note: The Outbound Freight Program is being retired. No new purchase orders (PO) can be opened as of January 31, 2024. Read more...

Q: How do I add more money to the PO?

A: Submit a Change Order in BearBuy.

Shipping Labels

Q: Now that I have a PO for FedEx billing, should I change how I ship my packages?

A: No, the only change is you'll enter your PO Number in the Billing Reference on your shipping labels.

Q: Do I need to reference my PO Number on each shipment?

A: YES.

Q: Where do I enter the PO Number on the shipping label?

A: Enter the PO Number in the Billing Reference on your shipping labels. Do not add extra characters or spaces—simply enter the PO Number, such as: B000012345

  • When creating a shipping label on fedex.com, enter the PO Number in the "Your reference" field in the Billing Details.
     
     FedEx.com Billing Reference with PO Number
  • On a paper shipping label, write the PO Number in the "Your Internal Billing Reference" field.
     
     Paper FedEx Airbill with PO Number in the Internal Billing Reference

Q: What happens if I forget to enter the PO Number on the shipping label?

A: The charges will be applied to the "default" PO associated with the FedEx Account.

Viewing Invoices

Q: How do I view the charges in BearBuy?

A: 

  1. Log into your UCSF MyAccess account, and click on the BearBuy link to open the application.
  2. Navigate to the PO in BearBuy.
     
     PO Number entered in the search box at the top of the BearBuy screen
  3. Click on the Invoices tab on the PO.
     Invoices tab highlighted on the PO
  4. Click on the Voucher Number to view the VPL invoice details.
     Voucher Number highlighted on the PO
  5. On the voucher, scroll down to the line items and hover your cursor over each line description to view the FedEx Account, FedEx Invoice Number, and Tracking Number.
     Pop up shows shipment details

Note: The voucher is being paid to VANTAGE POINT LOGISTICS INC (not FedEx). By enrolling in the Outbound Freight Program, your department has agreed to pay VPL and allow VPL to handle the payment to FedEx.

Q: How do I view the charges in MyReports?

A: 

  1. Log into your UCSF MyAccess account, and click on the MyReports link to open the application.
  2. Select the Transaction Detail Report link under the Transactional Reports tab.
     Screenshot Transaction Detail Report link
  3. Report Date Filters: Set your desired Date Range as needed.
     
     Screenshot Date Range with Jan to Feb selected
  4. Chartstring Filters: Enter at least one chartstring value, such as your Dept ID or Project. To enter a value, start typing the number and wait for the value to appear. Then, click the Add button.
     Screenshot Dept ID with Add button highlighted
  5. Report Specific Filters: Set the following three filters.
    1. Transaction Type: Voucher
    2. Vendor: VANTAGE PONT LOGISTICS INC
    3. Display Columns: Check PO Number and Voucher ID
       Screenshot with filters selected
  6. After setting your report parameters, click Run Report.
     Run Report button
  7. The report displays the VPL Invoice Number (Ref/Inv ID), PO Number, and the internal UCSF Voucher Number (Voucher ID). You may need to scroll to the right to view all columns.
    ​​
    Note: The Transaction Detail Report will include charges for outbound shipments and inbound shipments that match your search criteria. Outbound freight Voucher IDs start with 5, whereas Inbound freight Voucher IDs start with 03. Inbound freight charges are the cost of shipping goods that your department ordered through BearBuy from the supplier to your department. For more details, visit VPL Inbound Freight Program.
    Sample report
  8. To export the report, scroll to the right and click the Excel icon.
    Excel icon

Note: Once you've enrolled in the Outbound Freight Program, the charges for your FedEx Account will appear in MyReports as payments to VANTAGE POINT LOGISTICS INC (not FedEx).


Q: I don't recognize this charge. How do I report this?

A: Contact VPL Customer Care at [email protected] to request a refund if you believe VPL charged the wrong PO for the shipment.

  • Provide your FedEx Account, PO Number, VPL Invoice Number, and FedEx Invoice and/or Tracking Number.
  • Contact FedEx Fraud Department at 1-800-584-2681 if you believe your FedEx Account was fraudulently used by another party. You can request FedEx refund the fraudulent charges.
    • Provide your FedEx Account and FedEx Invoice and/or Tracking Number.