How it works
How truck dispatch works with us: from first call to paid invoice, and you say yes to every load.
Here is how truck dispatch works at RescueLoad, one load at a time. We find and negotiate the load, you decide, the broker sends the rate con to you, and we keep the paperwork moving until the money is in. Below is a real sequence of steps with made-up times, so you can see who does what and when.
Dispatch onboarding in three punches.
01 · THE CALL
We learn how you run
About twenty minutes. Your equipment, the lanes you like and the ones you won't touch, how many days out, your home time, and the lowest rate you'll accept. We also confirm your fee tier: 5%, 4% or 7%.
02 · THE PACKET
Carrier setup with brokers
Brokers won't book a carrier they haven't set up. We send your carrier packet, with your authority letter, insurance certificate, W-9 and a notice of assignment if you factor, to the brokers that fit your lanes.
03 · THE FIRST OFFER
A load you can turn down
Once you're set up, the offers start. The first one is the same as every one after it: the rate and the terms laid out, and the decision left to you.
Your settings, in writing
What you tell us on the first call becomes your standing instructions, and every offer is checked against them before it reaches you. You can change any of them with a text.
- The lowest rate per mile you'll run, loaded and with deadhead counted.
- Lanes and states you like, and the ones you won't touch.
- Home time: which days, how often, and how far out you'll go.
- Brokers or receivers you've had trouble with and want to avoid.
- Freight you will and won't haul: hand unloads, touch freight, hazmat your endorsements cover.
The first weeks
Setup speed depends mostly on brokers. Some approve a carrier packet the same day, others take longer, and a few won't book an authority younger than they like. We start with the ones that move fastest for your lanes and add more as your packet clears.
Expect us to ask more questions early on. Each offer you decline tells us something about how you run, and the offers get closer to what you want. If something about the way we work doesn't suit you, say so; you can change your settings or stop with 30 days notice.
One load, booking to payment Example times
Every step of one load, punched in, with who does it.
Each row is a punch on the load's time card. The colored tag shows whose job it is: yours, ours or the broker's. The document on the right is what proves the step happened, because when money is disputed later, the document is what gets paid.
- MON 07:10OFFER
We find and work the loadUs
A dispatcher finds a load that fits your lane, your equipment and your rate floor, then calls the broker. We counter the rate, ask for free time and detention in writing, a layover amount, a TONU and lumper reimbursement, and check that the pickup and delivery windows work with your hours.
Load posting, broker notes
- MON 07:40YOUR CALL
You say yes or noYou
You get the offer by phone or text: lane, miles, rate, appointment times and every accessorial term we got. If something's missing, we tell you. You decide. A no costs nothing, and we go back to looking.
Load offer 1 of 2
ExampleFresno, CA to Phoenix, AZ
- Miles
- 588
- Rate
- $2,150
- Per mile
- $3.66
Pickup Tue 06:00
Offer summary
- MON 07:55RATE CON
The rate con comes to youBrokerYou
The broker emails the rate confirmation to you, not to us. Read it against the offer. If it matches, sign and return it. If a line changed, call us before you sign and we take it up with the broker.
ExampleRate confirmation
Load EXAMPLE-1042 · Origin, ST to Destination, ST
Linehaul: $2,150 all-in
Carrier signature ____________ (that's you)
Free time
What we negotiate before you see it
Free time at both ends, counted from check-in.
What to check before you sign
That both stops are named and the clock starts at check-in.
Signed rate con
- TUE 06:05PICKUP
In, loaded, outYouUs
Send us your check-in time. Check the piece count and the seal before you sign the bill of lading, and photograph it. We watch the clock against free time and warn the broker in writing before it runs out.
BOL, seal photo, in and out times
- TUE 14:20IN TRANSIT
Check calls handledUs
We give the broker updates so your phone stays quiet while you drive. If you're running late or the receiver moves the appointment, we handle the call and get any layover or reschedule in writing.
Check-call log
- WED 08:30DELIVERY
Signed POD, every pageYou
Get the proof of delivery signed. If anything is short or damaged, make sure it's written on the POD before you leave, then photograph every page and send it the same day.
Signed POD, lumper receipt
- WED 10:00INVOICE
Invoice with the proof attachedUs
We prepare the invoice with the linehaul and any accessorial claims, attach the rate con, POD, receipts and time records, and send it to the broker or your factoring company.
Invoice packet
- NET TERMSPAID
PaymentBroker
The broker pays on its terms, or your factoring company funds you sooner. If a broker short-pays or ignores a detention claim, we follow up with the documents until it's settled or clearly refused.
Remittance
What we never ask you for.
A dispatch service works for you, under your authority. That means some things stay with you, always, and you should be wary of any dispatcher who asks for them.
Your load board logins
We search with our own access. Your accounts stay yours.
Permission to sign for you
You sign every rate con. We never book in your name without your yes.
An upfront fee or deposit
No setup fee. You pay only on loads you hauled.
A long contract
Month to month, and you can stop with 30 days notice.
Control of your money
Brokers and factoring companies pay you. We bill our fee separately.
What you send us from the road.
Most of your part happens at the dock, in a few photos. Times, signatures and receipts are what turn waiting into detention pay and a damage notation into a claim that holds up. Tap each document for what to check and what to photograph. The full list of what a load creates is in our freight paperwork guide.
The four you send on every load
Signed rate con
The broker sends it, you sign it.
- Matches the offer
- Rate, appointment times and every accessorial term.
If your truck needs a CDL: your testing program comes first.
Carriers whose drivers need a CDL must have a DOT drug and alcohol testing program before the first load, and an owner-operator under their own authority is both the employer and the driver, so they need to be in a random testing pool. Brokers may ask about it during setup. Non-CDL trucks, like a 26 ft box truck rated at 26,000 lb or less, aren't in that program.
CDL carrier without a random pool yet? Join a DOT consortiumWe may earn a referral fee through this link. It doesn't change your price. DisclosureHow it works, in straight answers
Do I approve every load before it's booked?
Who gets the rate confirmation, me or you?
What happens if I decline a load?
Who sends invoices to brokers?
How do I send PODs and receipts?
Who handles check calls?
What happens if a load goes wrong?
Want to see the money side first? Read how our dispatch fee is worked out. Running a new MC? See dispatch for new authorities. New to the whole idea? Start with what truck dispatching is.
Pick your truck and start your setup
About 2 minutes. You approve every load.
Your first offer, your first yes or no.
Send the application today. Setup takes a call and your carrier packet, and then the offers start.
You approve every load. No setup fee. No contract.