Freight Insights
How to Prepare Freight for a White-Glove Delivery
A practical checklist for shippers: packaging, labeling, access details, and recipient coordination that make white-glove deliveries go smoothly.
United Federal Freight LLC · September 8, 2026 · 5 min read
The best white-glove crew cannot fix a delivery that was set up to fail. Most problems trace back to information the shipper had and the carrier did not. Here is what to prepare.
Packaging
Protect the product for transit, not just for the warehouse. Corner protectors, blankets, and shrink wrap on furniture; crates for glass, stone, and high-value pieces; pallets for anything heavy enough to need a pallet jack. If the product needs to arrive unboxed and pristine, say so, and confirm that unpacking and debris removal are part of the service.
Labeling
Label every piece with the order or reference number and the piece count (1 of 4, 2 of 4). Multi-piece orders are where items get separated.
Access details
Tell the carrier what the delivery location looks like: house or apartment, stairs or elevator, gate codes, narrow doorways, long carries from the street, parking restrictions. This determines whether a second person is needed and how long the delivery will take.
Recipient coordination
Provide the recipient's name and mobile number, and confirm they know a delivery is coming and roughly when. A call-ahead from the driver works far better when the recipient is expecting it.
Service specification
List exactly which components you want: threshold, inside, room of choice, assembly, debris removal, photos, signature. Ambiguity at the quote stage becomes a dispute at the door.
Documentation
Decide in advance what proof you need: signed POD, delivery photos, or both. Ask how and when it will be provided.
Next step
Ready to put this into practice?
Tell us about the shipment and we will tell you how we would handle it.