FedEx Overcharged, Despite Worker Who Complained

FedEx is being sued for allegedly overcharging business customers, and newly unsealed internal emails reveal that at least one employee suspected the problem and accused the company of taking "no action" to fix it. The 2011 emails from sales executive Alan Elam, which FedEx wanted to keep confidential, include one in which Elam tells a superior that he has brought the problem "to the attention of many people over the past five years, including more than one managing director and no action has been taken to address it."

Elam later adds, "My belief is we are choosing not to fix this issue because it is worth so much money to FedEx. I also believe this is a widely known problem." The lawsuit against FedEx was brought by two law firms who say the company has improperly applied a residential delivery surcharge to business customers shipping to nonresidential addresses, the Wall Street Journal reports. The minimum residential delivery fee is $3 as of January 2012, according to the suit. (More FedEx stories.)