SETUP · SEVEN STEPS · NO SETUP FEE
How truck dispatch works, from application to first load
Here is how truck dispatch works with us, with nothing left vague. You apply in about two minutes, we set up your packets and learn your rules, and then we start bringing you loads. Every one of them is your call, and the rate confirmation always comes to you. Most questions carriers ask are answered right below.
02 · QUICK ANSWERS
Dispatch onboarding: the questions first
Do you need my maintenance schedule?
What happens if I break down on a load?
Do I approve every load?
Who signs the rate confirmation?
What paperwork does a dispatcher need?
How do dispatchers get paid?
How often will I get reports?
Who handles check calls?
Can I pause dispatch for home time?
Carrier setup with a dispatcher, step by step
Tap a step to see what you do and what the desk does. The same seven steps, written out:
YOU
Fill in the 2-minute application: equipment, cargo length, authority and contact details.
THE DESK
Read it the same day and pick a dispatcher who knows your equipment and region.
1. Apply
The application asks what you run, how long your cargo space is, how many trucks you have and where your authority stands. We dispatch 26 ft box trucks and larger across 11 equipment types, so the form stops early if the truck is shorter. It takes about two minutes and costs nothing.
2. The first call
A dispatcher calls at the time you picked. This call sets your rules: which lanes you like, which states you avoid, how often you want to be home, the lowest rate per mile you will accept and the days the truck does not run. Those rules decide which loads we even bring to you.
3. Documents
We need your MC and DOT numbers, a W-9, a current certificate of insurance and, if you factor, your notice of assignment. Brokers check these before they release a load, so getting them right once saves a phone call on every load after.
4. Carrier packets
Each broker has its own setup packet. We fill them out for the brokers we work with, so when a good load appears, the broker already has you on file and the load does not go to someone faster.
5. Your PM schedule
Tell us your service intervals, the shop you use and when your next PM or annual inspection is due. Service days go on the calendar before freight does. If a load would carry the truck past a due service, you hear that before you decide. Our guide on planning around breakdowns and downtime explains why this matters.
6. The first load
We send the load with the lane, times and rate. You say yes, counter or no. On a yes we confirm with the broker, and the broker emails the rate confirmation straight to you. You read it and sign it. After that, the check calls and the delivery confirmation are ours.
7. The weekly report
Every week you get each load with its gross, our fee and what you keep, plus any detention or layover still open. It is also the moment to change next week's plan: a new lane, more home time, a shop day.
New authorities follow the same steps with a little more broker vetting. See dispatch for new authorities for what to expect in the first months.
04 · A LOAD OFFER
What saying yes or no actually looks like
Try the EXAMPLE offer. It is the same sequence every time: we bring the load, you decide, the broker sends the rate confirmation to you, you sign, and we take the check calls. Saying no costs nothing and does not count against you. We keep looking.
Counter is often the most useful button. If a rate is close but not quite there, tell us what you need and we go back to the broker. Sometimes they move, sometimes they don't, and you decide again with the new number in front of you.
EXAMPLE load offer
- 1. Offer
- 2. Your call
- 3. Rate con to you
- 4. Check calls
Dallas, TX to Atlanta, GA · 780 mi · $2.35/mi · pickup Tue 8:00
We found it and negotiated it. Nothing is booked until you say so.
- Every load is your yes or no.
- The rate confirmation comes straight to you. You sign it.
- No setup fee. No contract. 30 days notice.
How truck dispatch works in the first two weeks
The first two weeks are mostly about learning each other. In the first few days we finish your packets and start watching your lanes, so we can see which brokers post the freight you want and what they are paying. Expect a few calls from us asking quick questions: would you take this lane if the rate were right, how early can you pick up, do you want to run through the weekend.
Your first loads usually come once your packets are on file with the right brokers. Some carriers say yes to the first offer. Others turn down two or three before one fits. Both are normal. Every no tells us something about your rules that we did not know yet, and the next offer gets closer.
By the end of the second week you should have a weekly report in hand, a clear idea of how we talk to you, and a plan for the next PM or shop day already on the calendar. If something about the process does not suit you, that is the time to say so.
What a dispatcher needs to know about your truck
Freight is matched to equipment, so the details matter. We ask for the equipment type, the cargo length (26 ft is our minimum), trailer or body specs that affect what you can haul, liftgate or ramps if you have them, and any endorsements, such as hazmat or tanker. We also ask about the truck itself: year, make and how it is running. A truck that is due for brakes or tires changes what loads make sense this week.
Then the personal side: where you live, how many nights a week you want to be home, whether you run weekends, and the states or cities you would rather avoid. None of this is fixed. Tell us when it changes and the plan changes with it.
How we stay in touch
Load offers come by phone or text, whichever you prefer, with the lane, the times and the rate in one message. When the decision is yours, we wait for your answer. When it is routine, such as a check call or a delivery update, we handle it without bothering you. Dispatchers are on nights and weekends, so a problem at 2 a.m. still reaches a person.
We also expect the same in return: tell us early if you are running late, if the truck has a problem or if a receiver is holding you. The sooner we know, the more options we have with the broker.
If it isn't working
Sometimes the fit is wrong. Maybe the lanes you want are thin, or you find you would rather work the boards yourself. Service is month-to-month, so you can give 30 days notice and walk away with no fee for leaving. During those 30 days we keep working your truck the same way, and you keep the final say on every load.
Before you go, tell us what is not working. A changed floor rate, a new lane or a different home-time pattern fixes more problems than people expect.
What we never ask for
- Logins to your load board accounts, bank accounts or factoring portal.
- Money up front. There is no setup fee, ever.
- Your signature on a rate confirmation. You sign your own.
- Permission to accept loads in your name without asking you first.
- A long contract. Service is month-to-month with 30 days notice.
If anyone claiming to be us asks for any of these, stop and call the desk. The full fee rules are on the dispatch pricing page, and if you factor or want to, see how dispatch and factoring work together. CDL carriers with their own authority should also have a DOT drug testing consortium in place before the first load.
06 · START
Ready to start? Pick your truck
Choose what you run and the application opens with it filled in. Two minutes, then a dispatcher calls you.
Still deciding? That is fine. Apply anyway and use the first call to ask hard questions: how we pick loads, what a typical rate looks like on your lanes right now, how fast we answer at night. There is no fee until a load you approved is hauled, and you can stop before the first one if the answers are not what you wanted to hear.
What do you run?
26 ft minimum. Every load is your yes or no.
Start your setup today
About 2 minutes. No setup fee. No contract. Every load is your call.