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RescueLoad

    Oversize and heavy haul

    Oversize load dispatch that plans for permits, escorts and the overnight wait.

    Oversize loads pay for planning more than miles: permits from every state on the route, escorts that have to show up on time, travel windows that close at sunset, and cranes on both ends that work on their own schedule. When any of those slips, you sit. Our heavy haul dispatch desk builds the plan, and makes sure the days you sit are paid.

    Dispatch my heavy haul

    Six questions oversize carriers ask before they trust anyone with a load worth more than their truck.

    Heavy haul questions, answered first

    What is layover pay in trucking?
    Pay for a day you're held over: when a load can't be picked up or delivered on the scheduled day and you have to wait until the next one. On oversize loads it often comes from permit travel windows, escorts that don't show, or a receiver not ready to unload. It only pays if a daily amount is on the rate con before you accept.
    Who pays for permits and escorts?
    It depends on the load and the agreement, which is why it has to be written on the rate con. Often the shipper or broker arranges and pays for permits and escorts; sometimes the carrier does and is reimbursed, or the rate includes them. We confirm who orders them, who pays, and what happens if one is late, before you say yes.
    Do oversize loads pay detention?
    They can, when the terms are agreed. Oversize loads often take longer to load and secure, sometimes with cranes or specialized crews. We ask for free time and a detention rate at both ends, and separate loading time terms if the shipper expects a long load-out, so a long morning at a plant isn't unpaid.
    How long can permit delays take?
    Anywhere from hours to days, depending on the states, the size of the load, the route and whether a survey or special approval is needed. Each state issues its own permits and sets its own travel restrictions. We build realistic timing into the plan and get layover terms in writing for the days that slip.
    What is a superload?
    A load so large or heavy that it goes beyond the standard oversize and overweight permits in a state, so it needs special review, sometimes a route survey, engineering checks on bridges, or police escorts. Each state defines its own superload thresholds. Superloads take longer to permit and plan, and the rate and terms should reflect that.
    How much does heavy haul dispatch cost?
    The same as any truck we dispatch: 5% of linehaul and accessorial pay for one truck past 6 months of authority, 4% for two or more, 7% for a new MC until month 7. Permit and escort costs you pay and get reimbursed for pass through untouched, like tolls and scale tickets.

    Where an oversize load turns into a layover.

    The time card is a made-up oversize move. Nothing went wrong in the usual sense: the plant loaded on schedule, the escorts were on time. But the permit only allowed daylight travel, and the receiver's crane was booked for a different day. Two normal constraints turned a two-day trip into four.

    Each delay creates a different kind of pay, and each needs its own line on the rate con. Loading time past the agreed free time is detention. A day held over because the receiver isn't ready is layover. A day lost to a permit travel window may be layover too, if the rate con says so. Without those lines, every one of those hours is yours to absorb.

    The stack below the card shows how the same trip pays once those terms are in writing. Change the numbers to match a move you know.

    Four days, one loadExample

    1. DAY 1 · 10:00Arrive at the plantLoading by crane is scheduled for 11:00.
    2. DAY 1 · 15:40Loaded and securedFour and a half hours on site. Loading time past the agreed free time is billed.
    3. DAY 1 · 16:10Travel window closesThe permit allows travel only in daylight; there isn't enough left to reach the first state line.
    4. DAY 2 · 06:30Window opens, escorts on timeThe truck rolls at first legal light.
    5. DAY 3 · 09:00Receiver not readyThe crane at delivery is booked for tomorrow. The receiver confirms the reschedule in writing.
    6. DAY 4 · 08:00UnloadedOne layover day billed under the rate con, with the written reschedule as proof.
    The same trip, with terms in writing
    Example
    • $
    • $
    • $
    • $

    Total $6,115

    Dispatch fee at 5%: $274 on $5,475. Pass-through money is never in the fee. You keep $5,841.

    Permits and escorts: who arranges them, who pays, and what if they're late.

    Every state sets its own oversize rules: size and weight limits that trigger a permit, when escorts are required and how many, which hours and days you can travel, and what happens on holidays and in bad weather. A multi-state move means a permit for every state on the route, each with its own conditions.

    We don't guess at those rules. We confirm on every load who orders the permits, if you're expected to, who pays for them and how fast you're reimbursed, who books the escorts, and what you're paid if a permit or escort delay holds you over. Then it goes on the rate con.

    Route surveys matter on the biggest loads. Low bridges, tight turns, construction zones and weight-restricted roads can force a long detour, and the permitted route is the only route you can run. We check that the permit route works for your rig and its timing before the offer, and we flag routes with known clearance or restriction problems.

    State permit offices publish their rules and travel restrictions; check the ones on your route, and keep the permits in the cab exactly as issued.

    • Permits

      Who orders them, for which states, and who pays. Reimbursed permit costs are pass-through money, never in our fee.

    • Escorts

      Required by state rules for wider, longer or taller loads. Who books them, and what happens if they don't show.

    • Travel windows

      Daylight-only, weekend and holiday restrictions, and curfews in some cities. Built into the timing before you accept.

    • Dimensions and weight

      Exact height, width, length and weight on the rate con, measured, not estimated. A wrong height is a bridge problem.

    • Loading and unloading

      Cranes, crews and forklifts at both ends, with times confirmed.

    Lowboy dispatch with the whole plan in the offer.

    An oversize offer from us reads like a short plan: the dimensions and weight, the route states, the permit and escort arrangements, the travel windows, the loading and unloading setup, and the layover and detention terms. You decide whether it fits your trailer, your schedule and your appetite for the route. Accept, and the rate con comes to you to sign. Decline, and it costs nothing.

    Tell us your trailer's deck height, length, axle configuration and weight ratings once, and every offer is checked against them.

    The second made-up offer pays more but leaves you ordering permits yourself with no layover terms. On a long multi-state move, that can be the more expensive load once the waiting is counted. We show you both and let you choose.

    Load offer 1 of 2

    Example

    Peoria, IL to Omaha, NE

    Miles
    410
    Rate
    $2,900
    Per mile
    $7.07
    • 12 ft wide, permits by shipper
    • Layover $450 per day
    • Loading time over 3 hrs paid

    Pickup Thu 07:00

    The paperwork that protects a heavy haul.

    Oversize loads carry higher stakes, so the record has to be complete. Photograph the load secured before you leave and at each stop where you check it. Keep every permit as issued, with its conditions. Note the exact dimensions measured at loading on the bill of lading. Get the receiver's reschedule in writing if delivery moves. Those documents are what get layover paid and what protect you if something is questioned later.

    Loads that are tall but not too wide often fit a step deck instead of a lowboy; see step deck dispatch. For the full picture on day-long waits, read what layover pay is.

    The fee on a heavy haul: same rate, reimbursements untouched.

    5% of linehaul and accessorial pay collected for one truck past 6 months of authority; 4% for two trucks or more; 7% for a new MC until month 7. Layover and loading time count as load pay. Permit and escort costs you pay and get reimbursed, tolls and scale tickets never count. In the example above, the fee is $273.75 on $5,475, and the $640 in permits passes back to you untouched. More on the pricing page.

    Lighter, faster freight: hotshot dispatch. Preloaded trailers: power only dispatch.

    Plan the move. Get paid for the wait.

    Send the application with your trailer specs. Your first oversize offer arrives with permits, escorts, windows and layover terms laid out.

    Dispatch my heavy haul

    You approve every load. No setup fee. No contract.