Line 01 / Dry van dispatch service
A dry van dispatch service that checks every load against your floor
In dry van, the posted rate is half the story. The other half is the 90 empty miles to the pickup, the four hours at the dock, and the lumper receipt nobody reimbursed. We price all of it before a load reaches you, so the number you approve is the number you earn.
Dry van is the most crowded freight on the boards: more trucks chase the same posts, and brokers know it. That makes the first call, the counter and the reload plan worth more here than in almost any other equipment. It is also where a dispatcher who books cheap loads to keep you moving does the most damage.
Line 02 / Dry van load checker
Put one load through the same check our dispatchers use
Enter a load the way a broker would quote it: linehaul, fuel surcharge, loaded miles. Then add what the quote leaves out: the empty miles to get there, billable detention, and your cost per mile. The receipt prints the true rate across every mile, the 5% fee, your profit, and whether the load clears your floor.
All your costs divided by all your miles.
+ PAYS YOUR FLOOR ($1.95/mi)
Floor = cost per mile ÷ 0.95, so the fee is covered too. Starting values are an EXAMPLE.
Use it on a real offer
Next time a broker quotes you, put the numbers in before you answer. If the verdict says below your floor, you have a counter ready: the rate that clears it. If it says it pays, you can say yes without second-guessing at a fuel stop. That habit alone is most of what a dispatcher does on the phone, done in the time it takes to read the rate con.
Notice how far apart the posted rate and the true rate sit once deadhead is counted. A load that reads $2.80 a mile on the board can land near $2.50 across all the miles. That gap is where dry van carriers lose a week without noticing, and it is the first thing a dry van dispatcher should catch.
Detention works the other way. Two billable hours at a fair rate can turn a thin load into a fair one, if somebody actually files the claim with the timestamps. For a full trip-by-trip version with fuel and tolls, use the load profitability calculator.
Line 03 / What we negotiate
Four lines on every dry van rate con, all of them negotiable
Linehaul
We counter from your floor, not from the posted number. Spot van linehaul was $2.17 a mile on DAT's national average for the week ending Sept 18, 2026; what matters is your lane, your timing and how fast the call is made.
Fuel surcharge
Some brokers quote all-in, some split linehaul and surcharge. We make sure the surcharge reflects today's diesel price, not last quarter's. How surcharges are calculated is laid out in what is a fuel surcharge in trucking.
Detention
Free time at the dock, usually a couple of hours, then an hourly rate. We get the terms on the rate con before you accept, log arrival and departure on the check calls, and file the claim.
Lumper reimbursement
If the receiver charges for unloading, the rate con should say who pays. We confirm it up front, and you send us the lumper receipt so it gets reimbursed instead of forgotten.
Source: DAT, Dry Van Report, Sept 21, 2026 · checked Oct 2026
Two more we watch: truck ordered not used (TONU) when a broker cancels after you are dispatched, and layover when a load can't be delivered the day it was promised. Read what a fuel surcharge in trucking is, then check any surcharge with the fuel surcharge calculator.
Dry van freight we book
Retail and consumer goods, packaged food and beverage, paper and packaging, building products that ride inside, and e-commerce replenishment between warehouses. Some of it is drop and hook, most is live load and unload. Food-grade loads want a clean, odor-free trailer; some shippers want load locks or e-track, a pallet jack, or a seal on the doors. We match loads to what your trailer actually has, so you aren't turned away at the gate.
A dry van week with us
- Before Monday: the first load is lined up, with the reload in mind.
- Every pickup: appointment confirmed, detention terms on the rate con, broker updated.
- Every delivery: arrival logged for detention, BOL sent to the broker or your factor.
- Midweek: we plan where you empty on Friday so the weekend doesn't strand you.
- Weekly: a report with every load, the gross, the miles and the fee.
Where dry van weeks leak money
- - Loads into slow outbound markets on a Thursday, with nothing back out until Monday.
- - Live unloads with no detention terms on the rate con.
- - Lumper receipts that never get sent back to the broker.
- - Taking the first number a broker offers because the truck has been sitting since noon.
Line 04 / Fee
The dry van dispatch fee, in one line
5% of gross for one truck with 6+ months of authority. 7% while your MC is under 6 months. 4% per truck for 2+ trucks, a limited-time rate. No setup fee, no contract, and no fee in a week you don't haul.
Running two or more vans? Each truck is planned on its own freight and its own home time, and each one shows on the weekly report with its own rate per mile, so a weak truck can't hide behind a strong one.
Every load is offered to you before it is booked. The rate confirmation comes straight to you, and you confirm or decline. Full details: our dispatch fees.
Dry van dispatcher questions
How much does dry van dispatch cost?
5% of gross for one truck with authority older than 6 months, 7% while your MC is under 6 months, and 4% per truck for fleets of 2 or more (a limited-time rate). No setup fee, no contract, cancel with 30 days notice, and nothing in a week you don't haul.
What is a good rate per mile for dry van?
One that clears your floor after deadhead. For context, DAT reported dry van spot linehaul at $2.17 a mile for the week ending Sept 18, 2026, before fuel surcharge, up from $1.63 in September 2025. Your own cost per mile decides whether a given rate is good for you.
Is the fuel surcharge included in the dispatch fee?
The fee is a percentage of gross load revenue, and gross includes the fuel surcharge the broker pays on that load, plus detention or other accessorials. That is why we push for a fair surcharge as hard as the linehaul. You see the gross and the fee for every load on the weekly report.
Who pays lumper fees?
The broker or shipper should. Lumper charges at the receiver are normally reimbursed when you send the lumper receipt, and the rate confirmation should say so. We get that in writing before you accept, and we chase the reimbursement with the receipt you send us.
Can you find drop and hook loads?
When they exist on your lanes, yes, and we look for them first because they save hours at the dock. Drop and hook needs a trailer pool at the shipper or receiver, so it is more common with some shippers and lanes than others. We'll tell you honestly how often your lanes offer it.
Hand over the board, keep the final say
Tell us your trailer, home base and the lanes you like. We book dry van loads that clear your floor, with detention and lumper terms on the rate con before you accept.
5% of gross. No setup fee. Cancel with 30 days notice.