Things You Should Know About Truckload Services

Finding an excellent truckload service can make or break your business. You need to ensure that you find the best company possible to get your goods from point A to point B in a cost-effective manner. But amid all of this, you need to understand what makes a great trucking service provider and how it will impact your bottom line.

Anthony Seriously Trucking has years’ worth of experience and has made freight deliveries timely, efficient, and safe deliveries all across the USA.

Things you should know about truckload services

So, what kinds of products will you be shipping? Are the products fragile? Do they have any size requirements? Do you need refrigerated options? Do you require open/enclosed options?

After understanding what kind of cargo needs to be shipped and determining if special services are needed, such as refrigerated trucks, reach out to these trucking service providers and compare quotes from them.

In addition to knowing what kinds of services you need, know which types of carriers provide the correct type of service for your business.

The three main truckloads carrier types are:

Dedicated Truck

A dedicated truck hauls cargo or freight exclusively for one company – no one else – 24/7 – this allows businesses that move products regularly throughout the week to have their set route and schedule. The driver, who works exclusively for your company, will deliver without changing routes or stops – saving time and money because he won’t make any other delivery route.

Cargo can be moved from different locations daily, allowing flexibility with pick-up and delivery times. The driver is not responsible for any freight that is not on his Truck.

Businesses that ship high-value, time-sensitive freight would benefit the most from this type of service because they know their products are 100% covered by one company at all times. All trucks are tracked through GPS systems to ensure deliveries are made safely and efficiently.

Dedicated Contract Truck

This is similar to a valid contract, except the driver still makes other stops en route while working for you. This service will allow businesses operating in a particular region to consolidate shipping loads throughout the week (Monday-Friday) which can provide significant savings compared with UPS or FedEx ground services.

Still, it allows flexibility with scheduled pick-ups and deliveries each day, allowing the driver to run other loads as needed.

Diversified

Diversified trucking is a service where the carrier will not give up possession of the equipment (Truck and trailer) until the time agreed upon by both parties.

The main advantage this offers is that you don’t have to worry about your customer calling you for damaged or late shipments if it’s still in transit since you’ll be responsible for it until it gets where it’s going and who has control will depend on what type of freight contract was agreed upon between carrier and shipper(s).

Here are the two types of freight contracts:

Freight Brokerage – an intermediary that arranges transportation services with carriers. They do not own or operate any equipment themselves but find space available from their “pool” of member carriers and make those services available to those wanting those types of services.

Freight brokerage is legal in all modes (Truck, rail, air). Still, not all states allow for “non-vessel owning common carriers” (i.e., brokers) – one example being California – so be sure to check the laws in your state before getting into it.

Freight Forwarder – a service that offers essentially the same thing as a broker, except they may own their equipment and employ agents to work for them.

They take shipments from shippers and get them where they need to go by using their trucks or by contracting with other carriers through brokerage relationships. Brokers are limited to only offering truckloads or less.