UtilityPilot
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Data & methodology

Data sources & provenance

UtilityPilot is deliberately transparent about where numbers come from. We never present reference data as verified live rates, and every answer separates what you supplied from what still needs official confirmation.

How we label data

  • Verified live data

    Fetched at the time of use from an official or authorised source. Currently limited — Pilot does not maintain a live global tariff feed.

  • Official-source data with an effective date

    Figures drawn from published official schedules, valid as at a stated date and subject to change.

  • Repository reference data

    Built-in reference values (for example holiday calendars) clearly labelled as reference, not live confirmation.

  • User-provided rates

    Duty rates, fees and prices you enter. Pilot uses these exactly as given and marks them as your inputs.

  • Calculated estimates

    Deterministic results computed from the above. Estimates inherit the confidence of their least certain input.

Official source categories

Tariffs & customs

UK Trade Tariff — Official UK commodity codes, duty rates and measures.
USITC HTS — Official US Harmonized Tariff Schedule.
World Customs Organization — The Harmonized System and General Rules of Interpretation.

Taxes (VAT / GST)

National tax authorities — Authoritative for VAT/GST rates, thresholds and rules by country.

Freight & logistics

Carrier & forwarder tariffs — For volumetric divisors, rounding rules and container specifications.
IATA volumetric convention — The 6,000 divisor standard for air freight chargeable weight.

Business time

Official national holiday calendars — Authoritative public holiday dates for supported countries.

The live-tariff limitation

Pilot currently has no connected live tariff provider. The calculation layer is built around a clean provider interface so an official feed can be added without changing how answers are computed. Until then, duty rates must be supplied by you or confirmed against the official schedules above. Pilot will never invent a current tariff.

Read the methodology →Disclaimer →