Amazon are not immune to the cost of fuel and have taken the decision to introduce the first FBA fuel surcharge in the US. Billed as a fuel and inflation surcharge, Amazon say that rather than increasing fees, the FBA fuel surcharge is better than a permanent fee increase as they have little visibility as to how long increased costs will persist for.
From the 28th of April, the FBA fuel surcharge of 5% will be added to all FBA shipments in the US.
Amazon FBA fuel surcharge email to sellers
Hello selling partners,
Since the start of the pandemic, we have significantly invested in Amazon’s store and fulfillment operations to better support you and our customers. We’ve nearly doubled fulfillment capacity, added over 750,000 full- and part-time roles, and our average hourly wage in the U.S. has climbed from $15 to $18. These investments enabled tremendous growth for sellers, who have increased sales in our store by more than 70% during this time.
Like many, we have experienced significant cost increases and absorbed them, wherever possible, to reduce the impact on our selling partners. When we did increase fees, we were focused on addressing permanent costs and ensuring our fees were competitive with those charged by other service providers. In 2022, we expected a return to normalcy as COVID-19 restrictions around the world eased, but fuel and inflation have presented further challenges. It is still unclear if these inflationary costs will go up or down, or for how long they will persist, so rather than a permanent fee change, we will be employing a fuel and inflation surcharge for the first time—a mechanism broadly used across supply chain providers.
Beginning April 28, we will implement a Fuel and Inflation Surcharge of 5% on top of our current Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) fulfillment fee per unit rates. We know that changing fees impacts your business, and our teams are working each and every day to ensure FBA remains a great value for the premium fulfillment and delivery service it provides. Since 2020 and inclusive of this change, Amazon has increased fulfillment rates less than other carriers, and continues to cost significantly less than alternatives.
Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to our continued partnership.
– The Fulfillment by Amazon Team
