Our courier offers a carbon neutral shipping option. Does it cut our emissions?
Not in your inventory. The courier usually pays for carbon credits to match the delivery's estimated emissions. Your shipping emissions stay in Scope 3 at their gross value; the credits can be reported separately. Ask the courier which credits, how many and where they are retired.
How to report it
- Shipping emissions: Scope 3, category 4 or 9 depending on who pays.
- Credits bought on your behalf: a separate line, never subtracted.
- Wording: say the courier offset the delivery, not that you are carbon neutral.
What to ask the courier
- Emissions estimate per shipment and the method.
- Credit registry, project and serial numbers.
- Proof the credits were retired.
What Senseible does here
Senseible keeps each figure behind a claim traceable to the invoices and bills it came from, so a reader can check the number rather than take the wording on trust.
Sources: GHG Protocol Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard, GHG Protocol Corporate Standard
Last reviewed 2026-10-23.