Shipping with Verzenden via bol

Introduction

Verzenden via bol is a service offered by bol where we commit to ship products sold by our partners with low shipping costs for you, placing the responsibility for shipments away from you and on to us. For more information, see the dedicated webpage.

Get started with Verzenden via bol

Below you will find a summary of the steps required to implement Verzenden via bol and more information on which elements should be updated for each API resource.

Sign up for Verzenden via bol

To use Verzenden via bol, you need to register yourself first. Registration must be done once through your bol Seller Dashboard (Instellingen > Diensten > Aanmelden voor Verzenden via bol). Registration is currently not available via the API.

More information about the registration process can be found here.

Update your Offers

Each offer that you want to mark for sale through Verzenden via bol requires that you add an indication to it. You can do this by setting the deliveryCode of the offer to VVB. Be advised that this delivery code is only allowed in combination when the method under the fulfillment element is set to FBR.

Setting the method to VVB applies to the Create a new offer and Update an offer endpoints. You will also return the VVB code under the Retrieve an offer by its offer id endpoint and in our Retrieve an offer export file by offer export id endpoint. You can find more details and code examples on our technical documentation page.

Retrieve your Orders

When receiving your Get an order by order id, the distributionParty field under the orderItems.fulfilment element indicates whether this item requires shipment through bol or by yourself.

Managing delivery options

Customers can choose a delivery date for Verzenden via bol orders. This can be a date in the future. You should always hand over the order on the latest handover date that is given in the Get delivery options, so you don’t deliver the order too early or too late. Do not calculate your own handover date based on the Get an order by order id field exactDeliveryDate or the Get delivery options field latestHandoverDateTime.

Evening deliveries

Customers can also choose to deliver their packages in the evening. This is an option that will automatically appear in their checkout if it is available for the items. You can see if an order item has an evening delivery selected if the timeFrameType field value is EVENING. In that case you will only be able to choose an evening shipping label and you cannot mix labels with other order items. We only offer evening shipments for parcels, so if the item would fit a mailbox, you should adjust the packing dimensions.

For more information including the required dimensions for packages, see Evening deliveries with Verzenden via bol.

Pickup points with Verzenden via bol

If your offers are registered through Verzenden via bol, customers will be able to select an option for delivery at collection points at Albert Heijn or PostNL branches in the Netherlands, and Albert Heijn branches in Belgium, for certain items. For customers this option will automatically appear in their buy block as a free option if the product is eligible for pickup points.

For more information, see this topic.

How to use pickup points

As a partner with Verzenden via bol you do not have to do anything extra to enable this option, and the process works much the same as other shipment types. If a customer has selected a pickup point during the order, in the Get an order by order id endpoint, the pickupPoint field will be true, and the shipmentDetails.pickupPointName field will have the name of the collection location.

Shipping labels for pickup points

We have defined a set of templates for shipping labels for each specific pickup point type. When you generate a shipping label with pickup points, it will automatically display the correct destination and customer details.

Tracking shipments

When fetching shipment data, the same fields will appear from the order that were added to the GET single order call above.

Cutoff times

Depending on your work schedules we use different cutoff times in our checkout.

When a seller has a work schedule that says "orders placed before 15:00 today are delivered next-day", then the delivery promise is 'next day' for orders placed before 15:00 and 'next day + 1' for orders placed after 15:00.

Restrictions and ineligible products

Verzenden via bol to pickup points deliveries have certain restrictions that you should be aware of:

  • Weight and size of the parcel: If the product is too big or heavy it will not be sent via pickup points. This includes both the dimensions of the package, and certain product types such as refrigerators and microwaves.

  • Mailbox items: Pickup points are only available for parcels. If you choose a delivery option with labelType: MAILBOX_LIGHT, it will return an error if the customer has selected a pickup point.

  • Only next-day pickup: You cannot use any delivery options besides next-day pickup.

Retrieve Verzenden via bol shipping labels

When retrieving Verzenden via bol shipping labels, you should follow the same initial steps as the normal shipping label flow.

You cannot use your own purchased shipping labels for orders that have distributionParty: BOL.

Manage handoverDetails

When you set up the Get delivery options endpoint, you will also find the handoverDetails element in the response. The fields within this element provide you with information regarding how and when you need to deliver your item at the transporter.

  • meetsCustomerExpectations is a boolean that indicates if the label can be used to deliver a order on the promised deliveryDate. If this field is 'false' this label cannot be used to deliver on the promised deliveryDate and this will have a negative consequence on your performance score. If this label is 'true' you have to deliver the order on the latestHandoverdatetime to get the order delivered on the promised deliveryDate.

    For example, you might want to use a label that cannot deliver on the promised delivery date due to its scheduling (such as using TNT_BRIEF to deliver on a Monday). This would result in the deliveryDate being unmet, so the field meetsCustomerExpectations will be false. You can still use the shipping label, but your performance score will be negatively affected.
  • latestHandoverDateTime indicates the final date and time at which the item must be handed over to the transporter. Failing to meet this date and time will result in a penalty (strike), as the promised delivery date towards the customer will no longer be met, resulting in an unsatisfied customer. In that case, you are still able to purchase the label but it will be delivered later. The time linked to a delivery option differs per region.

  • earliestHandoverDateTime indicates the earliest date and time at which the order can be handed over to the transporter to ensure that your parcel is delivered on time.

    In case of transporter capacity restrictions, using the field earliestHandoverDateTime in your processes will prevent errors while trying to create shipping labels on early orders.

    Customers want to receive their orders just in time on the promised day of delivery. Since latest handover times differ per drop-off location, any time deviations might affect the delivery of your parcel. For a successful article on time record, hand over the parcel to the transporter during the time window between earliestHandoverDateTime and latestHandoverDateTime.

    In case the actual cut-off time at your transporter’s drop location is a little earlier the provided latestHandoverDateTime, it is required that you drop your parcel based on the actual cut-off time at your transporter’s drop location. Since, your article on time score is calculated based the actual cut-off time of your chosen transporter(PostNL, DHL or Instabox), hence it is highly recommended to check the actual cut-off time at the drop location of your chosen transporter by visiting the transporter’s official website. For more information, see this article.

  • collectionMethod indicates whether you need to drop off this item at the transporter (DROP_OFF), or whether the items are picked up at your address (PICK_UP).

Shipping label capacity restrictions

If you are unable to create a shipping label, it may be due to capacity restrictions put in place to prevent overload during times of peak demand. In these situations, the Get delivery options request will show all handover options; however if you select an option with a handover date that is after the current date, the Create a shipping label action will result in a process status FAILURE. The process status error will also contain a detailed message to let you know when you can try to create the shipping label again.

In times of capacity restrictions, labels will be blocked when the handover date is after today, with the following exceptions:

  • If it is after pick-up/drop-off cutoff times: shipping label creation for delivery options with a handover date of tomorrow will be available. This enables you to start preparing orders for tomorrow the evening before.

  • On weekends: shipping label creation for delivery options with a handover date of Monday will be available from Friday evening onwards. This enables you to start preparing Monday orders on the weekend.

This is an emergency break, so we will only use it in extreme situations. You can view the current status of Verzenden via bol here.

Transporter codes and label types

Currently, the following transports and label types are available for Verzenden via bol:

Be aware that over time new transporters/label types could be added to the proposition.
Table 1. Transporter codes
transporterCode Definition

TNT

PostNL parcel delivery network

TNT_BRIEF

PostNL mail delivery network

RJP

Red je Pakketje parcel and mail delivery network

DHLFORYOU

DHL delivery network

BUDBEE

Amperé-Budbee delivery network

Table 2. Label types
labelType Definition

PARCEL

Parcel delivery (regular, evening, and pickup point)

MAILBOX

Delivery through mailbox with delivery scan

MAILBOX_LIGHT

Delivery through mailbox without delivery scan

Packages with delivery scan will be scanned by the transporter at the customer’s door.

Ship order item(s)

Verzenden via bol order items must be shipped with a purchased Verzenden via bol shipping label. When you buy such a shipping label, you will receive a shippingLabelId from the Create a shipping label request. With the Get a shipping label request you will receive the Transporter and the Track & Trace codes for the shipping label.

You should either provide the shippingLabelId or the transport element to ship a Verzenden via bol orderItem. You will receive an error message if you don’t use the correct shipping label.

The shipment of an orderItem is the trigger to pay for your Verzenden via bol shipping label.

Hand in package(s)

For more information about handing in your packages, see the dedicated Verzenden via bol webpage.

Retrieve your shipments

When receiving your shipment details, the distributionParty field under the shipmentItems.fulfilment element indicates whether this item was shipped through bol or by you.

Invoicing

An overview of all income and expenses can be found on your all-in-1 invoice, which you receive every month. Verzenden via bol shipping label fees are included in the all-in-1 invoice.