The Lesson Most Carriers Learn Too Late When most fleet owners think about maintenance, they think repairs. They think of downtime, tow bills, and chasing mechanics. But if you’re planning to grow—and not just survive—the only way to keep your trucks moving is to build a proactive maintenance program, not a reactive one. In this […]
Impersonation fraud is not slowing down; it is getting smarter. Scammers hack emails, forge documents, and pose as carriers, brokers, or even shippers to steal freight and money. Small fleets and new brokers are prime targets. Protect yourself by locking down email, owning your domain, and vetting every deal before you move.
If you’re sitting at a fuel island weighing whether to keep running under your own MC or lease onto someone else’s authority, you’re not alone. 2025 has put a lot of pressure on small carriers and owner-operators to reevaluate everything. Margins are tighter. Brokers are pickier. Insurance rates are through the roof. And let’s not […]
The benchmark diesel price used for most fuel surcharges rose for the second straight week.
The U.S. International Trade Commission has ruled in favor of Motive, rejecting Samsara’s claims of patent infringement.
Flatbedding ain’t just freight without walls. It’s a completely different beast, and if you’ve never pulled open deck before, you need to check your assumptions at the door. There’s more money in it sometimes, sure—but there’s also more responsibility, more exposure, and more prep. And if your truck isn’t already set up for it? You’re […]
They say you can’t cut some corners in trucking, but a lot of folks sure try when it comes to tires. Wide base singles—better known as super singles—promise lighter weight, better fuel economy, and a smoother ride. But are they worth it? Or are you trading redundancy for risk just to shave a few hundred […]
If you run refrigerated freight, you already know reefer maintenance isn’t optional—it’s mission-critical. But there’s one number that quietly determines the health, resale value, and future liability of your trailer more than any other: reefer hours. So many carriers only look at year, brand, or cosmetic condition when buying or selling a reefer trailer. But […]
Trucking is a business that’ll take everything you’ve got—and then ask for more. It’s not just the freight market that beats you down. It’s the long nights, the payroll stress, the truck that breaks down two days after you paid to fix it, the fuel card hitting its limit, and the broker that ghosts you […]
There are usually two stories behind a truck abandonment. One is the tale of a fed-up driver — pushed too far by poor planning, bad equipment, or broken promises. The other is the shady operator, the one who never intended to finish the job right and saw your truck as a temporary paycheck. Either way, […]
If you’re still behind the wheel every day, running your own loads, answering broker calls between stops, juggling dispatch while doing your pre-trip — it’s time for a gut check. Because there’s a fine line between hustle and hustle blindness. This article isn’t about telling you to park your truck tomorrow. It’s about knowing when […]
You’d think the market was rebounding, but all signs show we’re still in a fragile place. Rates aren’t climbing. Volumes are spotty. And OTRI (tender rejections) is stuck in the single digits, which usually means brokers are in full control of the market. So why are so many used trucks being bought right now? Let’s […]
A Recycled Myth For decades the trucking industry has sounded the same alarm. The American Trucking Associations said in 2021 that the country was short 80,000 drivers and warned the gap could double by 2030 (PrePass Alliance). The Bureau of Labor Statistics noted that ATA has been repeating this argument since at least 2005, and […]
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Wednesday removed three more electronic logging devices from its registered list, giving affected fleets until Nov. 3 to swap out the non-compliant systems before facing enforcement action.
The benchmark price used as the basis for most fuel surcharges rose after five weeks of declines.
If you run trucks for a living, your maintenance records are more than paperwork. They’re your defense in a DOT audit and your bargaining chip when it’s time to trade or sell equipment. Yet too many carriers treat documentation like an afterthought—tossing receipts in a shoebox or relying on memory. That works right up until […]
Every trucker knows when the freight slows down—you don’t need a chart to feel it in your wallet. But if you’re a small carrier trying to make sense of why your phone’s not ringing and your loads are paying pennies, you need to understand what’s coming down the pipe. One word: tariffs. Yeah, I know. […]
Your DPF and DOC don’t fail overnight—they fail slowly, one idle session and one short trip at a time. Some think emissions system issues are bad luck or bad engineering, but the truth is these systems are extremely sensitive to how the truck is operated day in and day out. The difference between a truck […]
Preventative maintenance is one of those areas where carriers either run a disciplined system or they run themselves into breakdowns that bleed cash. Too often, maintenance is treated like a disruption instead of a controllable part of operations. A truck goes into the shop and revenue stops. Loads are missed. Customers are frustrated. But here’s […]
One of the hardest moments in trucking ownership is realizing your truck is worth less than what you still owe on it. You bought that truck thinking it was an investment, a tool to build your business. But markets shift, equipment depreciates, and sometimes the note outruns the value. That’s when you’re upside down—owing $90,000 […]
