ONE TRUCK / ONE OWNER / YOUR RULES
A dispatch service for owner operators who keep the wheel
You didn't get your own authority to take orders from a dispatcher. You set the rules: home time, lowest rate, how far you will deadhead, where you won't go. We book inside them, and the rate con comes to you to sign.
WHAT YOU KEEP CONTROL OF
Before we talk about what we do, here is what stays yours. Every time, on every load, for as long as you dispatch with us.
- Which loads you take: every rate con comes to you to sign or decline
- Your floor rate, counting empty miles
- Your home time and your days off
- Lanes, regions and customers you won't touch
- Your brokers: keep the ones you like, drop the ones you don't
- Your money: brokers pay you or your factoring company, not us
CONTROL PANEL
Your rules, written down
Set the rules you would give any dispatcher. The board restates them as the rules our desk books inside. Bring them to the intro call, or send them with your application, and they go on your file before the first load.
HOME TIME
NO-GO AREAS
- Home by Saturday, with the last load planned to finish near home
- No more than 100 empty miles to a pickup
- Nothing under $2.25 per mile all-in, empty miles counted
- Never: NYC and North Jersey
- Live loads and unloads are fine when detention terms are on the rate con
- No weekend runs unless you ask
If a load breaks a rule, you only see it with a reason. You still sign or decline every rate con.
Set my dispatch rulesWHAT WE HANDLE
Owner operator dispatch services, the full list
Here is what comes off your plate once you are rolling with us, in plain owner-operator terms.
Finding the freight
Load boards, direct broker contacts and repeat lanes, filtered by your rules before you hear about them.
Arguing the rate
We counter, push and walk away from bad offers. You don't spend your lunch break haggling.
Broker setups
Packets, insurance certificates and W-9s sent once and tracked, so new brokers can book you fast.
Check calls
The broker calls us for updates, not you while you are driving.
Detention and layover
Logged and claimed when free time runs out, under the terms on your rate con.
The reload
Next load lined up before you deliver, so you are not sitting at a truck stop refreshing a board.
Your week
Planned backwards from your home day.
Broker checks
Credit and authority checked before your truck goes on a load.
Weekly report
Every load, miles, gross, rate per mile and our fee on one page.
TIME BACK
The hours you stop spending on the phone
Self-dispatching owner-operators split the day between driving and working the board: refreshing postings, calling brokers, waiting on callbacks, emailing packets, chasing detention. That work doesn't stop when the wheels do, and it eats the evenings that were supposed to be yours.
We can't tell you exactly how many hours you will get back, because it depends on how you run today. What we can tell you is which of those jobs move to our desk, shown on the board here. What you do with the time is up to you.
A WEEK WITH US
Sunday night to Saturday home
An example, not a client story. A dry van owner-operator in Indiana with the rules from the control panel above: home Saturday, nothing under the floor, no Northeast metros.
Sunday evening a rate con lands in the driver's inbox for a Monday morning pickup 40 miles from home, going to Atlanta. The driver reads it, signs it, goes to bed. Monday the broker calls us for the check calls, not the driver.
Tuesday afternoon, before the Atlanta delivery, the next load is lined up out of the same area to Memphis. Wednesday the receiver in Memphis keeps the truck three hours past the appointment; we log it and file detention.
Thursday a broker offers a well-paying load to New Jersey. It breaks a rule, so the driver hears about it with the reason and passes. We book a load to Indianapolis instead that finishes Friday afternoon, an hour from home. Saturday the weekly report shows four loads, the miles, the gross, the detention claim and our fee.
THE PRICE
5% for one truck. That's it.
One truck with an MC at least 6 months old pays 5% of gross load revenue, only on loads you haul. A newer MC pays 7% until month 6; see new authority dispatch. No setup fee, no minimums, month-to-month.
Work out what that means for your truck with the dispatch ROI calculator, or see every detail on dispatch cost.
- Loads
- 4
- Gross
- $7,400
- Our fee at 5%
- $370
- A 10% desk
- $740
- Home by
- Saturday
CHOOSING A DISPATCHER
The best dispatch service for owner operators passes this test
There are a lot of dispatch companies for owner operators, and some are a bad deal. Use this list on anyone, us included. A good desk answers every question without hedging.
The biggest red flag is a dispatcher who also works for brokers, because they are paid on both sides of your rate. Read when a dispatcher works for the broker.
01
Who signs the rate con?
It should be you. A dispatcher who signs for you can commit your truck to anything.
02
What is the fee, and on what?
A clear percentage of gross, in writing. Ask whether detention and lumper money count.
03
Is there a contract or setup fee?
Month-to-month with notice is normal. Long contracts and setup fees protect them, not you.
04
Can I say no to a load?
Without penalty, every time. If the answer hesitates, walk away.
05
Who pays me?
The broker or your factoring company, straight to you. Not through the dispatcher.
06
Do you get paid by brokers?
A dispatcher should only be paid by you.
OWNER-OPERATOR GUIDES
Running power only? Read power only as an owner-operator. Thinking about containers? See intermodal owner-operators. Waiting 30 days on broker pay? Factoring for owner-operators pays in days.
OWNER-OPERATOR QUESTIONS
Straight answers, one truck at a time
01What does a dispatcher do for an owner-operator?
Finds loads that fit your truck, lanes and home time, negotiates the rate, sets you up with brokers, takes the check calls, plans the reload and files detention claims. You keep the wheel and every decision: the rate con comes to you, and you sign or decline each load.
02How much do owner-operator dispatch services cost?
Most services charge a percentage of each load's gross. Ours is 5% for one truck with an MC at least 6 months old and 7% while your MC is younger. Many services charge 8% to 10%. No setup fee, no contract.
03What if I want to run only certain lanes?
Tell us on the intro call and we book inside them. Some owner-operators run one regional loop, some want home every weekend, some refuse whole regions. We will tell you if your lanes are thin that week, show you what else is out there, and let you decide.
04Do you work with owner-operators who factor?
Yes, most of our carriers do. We send your Notice of Assignment to brokers with your packet so they pay your factoring company, and we make sure the rate con, bill of lading and proof of delivery for every load are ready to submit.
05How fast can I start?
As fast as you can send your documents and brokers approve your packet. Our part, the intro call and setup, happens quickly. Broker approval times vary, and we tell you which brokers are ready to book you and which are still pending. Sending a complete packet the first time is the single biggest thing that speeds it up.
06Can a dispatcher plan my home time?
That is half the job. We plan the week backwards from your home day: the last load ends near home, and the first load of the next week starts near home. If a better-paying load breaks your home time, you see it as an option, not a surprise.
07Can I keep my own brokers and customers?
Yes. Tell us who you already haul for and we keep booking with them, negotiate for you, and fill the gaps around those loads with new freight. Your relationships stay yours, and the rate con still comes to you on every load.
08What if I want to take a week off?
Tell us and we stop booking. You pay nothing for a week you don't haul. When you are ready, we start planning the next week around your return day.
09What reports will I get?
A weekly report with every load: pickup and delivery, loaded and empty miles, gross, rate per mile, detention claimed and our fee. It is what you need to check our work and to see which lanes actually pay you best.
YOUR TRUCK / YOUR RULES / YOUR SIGNATURE
Keep the wheel. Hand us the phone.
Apply in two minutes. Your rules go on file before the first load, and every rate con comes to you.