Courier Service: Express Transport & Direct Drive at an Instant Price

What does a courier service do? Courier, express and parcel compared

A courier service takes a shipment straight from sender to recipient. The shipment is accompanied at all times, in person or electronically, and is not cross-docked in a sorting centre. There is no fixed weight limit: anything from a letter to a pallet is possible, as long as it fits into the vehicle. That is how the market studies of the courier, express and parcel industry define a courier service.

Express services promise a fixed, often guaranteed delivery time, for example the next morning, but route the shipment through transshipment centres to get there. Parcel services work with standardised sizes and weights, mostly up to 31.5 kg, and sort automatically – cheap per item, but without a fixed time and with several transfers.

For your choice this means: if an approximate delivery day is enough and you have a standard parcel, use a parcel service. If you need a fixed overnight deadline, use express. If you have to deliver today, have an awkward or fragile item, or want to be sure that nobody else handles the shipment, book a courier.

At Maxmove every job runs as a direct drive: one vehicle, one job, no transshipment, with live tracking and a digital proof of delivery.

Types of courier: from cargo bike to 3.5 t box truck

Not every courier is the same. Which type fits depends on the size, weight and route of the shipment:

Bike and cargo-bike courier: documents, keys and small parcels in the city centre, unaffected by traffic jams and parking. At Maxmove the cargo bike runs within the city.

Car courier: files, lab samples, spare parts and parcels up to 100 kg, also across city boundaries, for example from Cologne to Düsseldorf.

Van courier: pallets, furniture, equipment and trade fair goods, from a small van with two euro pallet spaces up to a Sprinter L2 with four.

3.5 t box truck: up to eight euro pallets and around 4.3 m of load length, with a tail lift if needed.

7.5 t truck: 12 to 15 euro pallets and up to 3,000 kg of payload.

Same-day and express courier describe not a vehicle but the speed: pickup and delivery on the same day. More on the same-day courier page. Overnight express, by contrast, is a network product with transshipment during the night.

Anything heavier than 3 t, or that has to be loaded on an open flatbed or unloaded by crane, is no longer a courier job but a special transport on request.

You will find the courier service for your city in the city list on this page – from Aachen through the Ruhr area to Bielefeld.

How is the price of a courier run calculated?

A transparent courier price is made up of just a few factors:

Distance: the route actually driven from pickup to delivery, not the straight-line distance.

Vehicle class: a cargo bike or car costs less than a Sprinter or 3.5 t box truck, because vehicle, fuel use and load capacity grow with size.

Time: immediate pickup and tight time windows cost more than a run booked in advance, as do runs at the weekend.

Extras: help with carrying, a second person, a tail lift, additional stops.

Waiting time: a reasonable loading and unloading time is included in the price. If the driver has to wait longer, the carrier may charge demurrage (Section 412(3) of the German Commercial Code, HGB).

Many courier services only quote a price on request. At Maxmove you see the binding instant price for your addresses and vehicle class before you book, including any extras you add. Example prices by city and vehicle are on the courier prices page, and the transport cost calculator works out your specific route.

Liability and insurance: what applies to a courier

A commercial courier is legally a carrier, so German freight law under the HGB applies. The courier is liable for loss and damage from acceptance to delivery (Section 425 HGB), capped at 8.33 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) per kilogram of gross weight (Section 431 HGB); for delay, at most three times the freight charge. In their terms and conditions couriers may set the limit at 2 to 40 SDR per kilogram if they point this out. Towards consumers they may not deviate to the consumer's disadvantage (Section 449 HGB).

Two special points are worth knowing. First: for letters and letter-like items, Section 449 HGB allows wider deviations through terms and conditions – so for original contracts or certificates it is worth reading the terms. Second: the compulsory liability insurance under Section 7a of the German Road Haulage Act (GüKG) does not apply to vehicles up to 3.5 t gross vehicle weight in domestic transport (Section 2 GüKG). The law therefore does not require it for car and van couriers. Ask whether the courier has carrier's liability insurance.

With light, valuable shipments, statutory liability often falls far short of the value of the goods: a 2 kg laptop is covered for 16.66 SDR. For such shipments your own cargo insurance is worthwhile. Maxmove runs are insured; the specific cover depends on the order and terms.

Booking a courier: the details the order needs

The more complete the order, the fewer queries and the less waiting. Have these ready:

Addresses with details: company name, building, gate or floor, and for industrial sites the registration at the gatehouse.

Contact people: name and phone number at the pickup and delivery address.

Shipment: type of goods, number of packages, dimensions of the largest item, total weight; for pallets also height and stackability.

Timing: from when the shipment is ready for collection and by when it must arrive at the latest.

Loading equipment: dock, forklift, lift – or whether help with carrying is needed.

Paperwork and special notes: delivery note, a reference number for the recipient, notes such as fragile, keep upright or confidential.

At Maxmove you enter these details online, see the available pickup window and the instant price, and book directly. You can share the tracking link with the recipient. Recurring runs, such as a daily messenger service between two sites, can be set up as fixed routes – talk to us via the business account. For a written order there is a transport order template.

How to recognise a good courier service

Whether a courier service suits you shows in a few points you can check:

Direct or consolidated: does the vehicle carry only your shipment, or does it pick up others along the way? For deadlines and fragile goods, that makes the difference.

Price up front: is the price fixed before booking, including extras and a clear rule on waiting time, or does the invoice arrive with add-ons?

Proof: is there a proof of delivery with signature, photo and timestamp that you can produce in a dispute?

Visibility: can you and the recipient follow the run live?

Liability: what liability limit is in the terms and conditions, and is there carrier's liability insurance?

Vehicles: is there the right class for your shipment, from cargo bike to 3.5 t box truck, or does everything go into the same van?

Billing: is there a business account with consolidated invoicing if you ship regularly?

Maxmove operates in Cologne and the NRW cities listed on this page, from the Rhineland via the Bergisches Land and the Ruhr area to Münster and East Westphalia.