Frequently Asked Questions

Use the Request a Quote form, or email me the shipment. The form asks for the things that decide a rate, so filling it in usually means fewer questions back.

If you would rather write it out in your own words, that is fine too. I will tell you what is missing rather than guess at it.

Open the quote form →

Pickup and delivery locations, when it needs to move, what the freight is, its weight and dimensions, how it is packaged, and whether either end has a dock or needs an appointment.

Anything you cannot answer yet is not a reason to wait. Send what you have and I will tell you what still has to be confirmed before the rate is firm.

Read the full quote checklist →

Yes. An email with the lane, the dates and what the freight is gets the same treatment as the form.

The form exists because it asks the questions in order and stops details being left out, not because it is the only way in.

It depends on the lane and on how much of the shipment is settled. A straightforward dry van lane with complete details is quick; an oversized or specialised move takes longer because it involves finding out what is actually available.

If a quote is going to take a while, I will tell you that rather than leave you waiting on it.

Yes, and it is often the right time to ask. A planning quote tells you roughly where a lane sits before you commit to it.

A planning number is not a booked rate. Once the details are firm, the rate is confirmed against what is actually available that week.

Why a quote changes →

It comes down to what the freight is, how big and heavy it is, how it gets on and off the truck, and whether it needs protecting from weather or temperature.

The equipment guide covers twenty trailer and truck types with typical space, payload and loading access. If it is still not obvious, describe the freight and I will tell you what it usually rides on.

Compare 20 trailer and truck types →

Dry vans, refrigerated trailers, flatbeds, step decks, box trucks and cargo vans cover most of what moves. Beyond those, the equipment guide also explains specialised trailers and power-only service.

Availability is by lane and by week, so what I can arrange on a given move is something I confirm rather than assume.

See the equipment guide →

Yes. Not every shipment needs a whole trailer, and paying for one when you do not is the most common way freight costs more than it should.

Which service fits depends on how much space the freight takes, how it is packaged and how much handling it can stand.

LTL, partial or full truckload →

Send the dimensions and weight, including anything that sticks out past the deck. Oversized freight is a different conversation: it can involve permits, routing restrictions and equipment that is not sitting empty nearby.

The earlier you ask about a load like that, the more options there are.

Shipping machinery →

Yes. Temperature-controlled freight needs the set point, the operating mode, whether the trailer has to be pre-cooled, and what records you need at delivery — agreed before it books, not at the dock.

Getting those settled up front is what stops a load arriving at the right time in the wrong condition.

What to settle before booking a reefer →

The freight packaged and staged, the paperwork printed, someone available to load, and the piece count and weight matching what was quoted.

Most loading delays are not about the truck. They are about the shipment not being ready when it gets there.

Before the truck arrives →

Say so when you request the quote. An appointment changes what a driver can do in a day, and a load booked without one can miss the window entirely.

Tell me who sets the appointment and what the hours are, because that decides how the load has to be scheduled.

Notify versus appointment →

That is workable, but it has to be known before the truck is dispatched. Without a dock the freight has to come off at ground level, which usually means a liftgate, a forklift on site, or hands to unload it.

A driver arriving at a site with no way to get the freight down is a wasted trip that somebody pays for.

Dock versus ground-level loading →

Yes. Multi-stop loads are common, and they need the stop order, the appointment times at each stop and what comes off where.

The order matters more than the mileage: freight has to be loaded so each stop can be unloaded without moving everything behind it.

How multi-stop loads work →

Yes. You should hear about pickup, transit and delivery without having to ask for any of them.

How often depends on the length of the run. A one-day regional move and a cross-country load do not need the same rhythm.

Through the carrier and the driver, with everything on a load kept against that load rather than scattered across an inbox.

That is most of what Freight Command Center does for you: when you ask where something is, the answer is in one place instead of somewhere in a thread.

What tracking statuses mean →

You hear it from me, not from the receiver. A late truck, a breakdown or a missed appointment is worth knowing about while there is still time to do something.

What can be done depends on the problem, and I will tell you what the actual options are rather than only that there is a delay.

When a shipment goes wrong →

Yes, and you should not have to chase the confirmation. Delivery gets confirmed and the signed paperwork follows.

If a delivery is short, damaged or refused, that is worth hearing about immediately rather than at invoicing.

Proof of delivery: the signed document showing the freight arrived, who signed for it, and anything noted at the time.

It matters most when something is wrong. A clean signature on a damaged shipment makes a claim much harder, which is why what gets written on it at delivery is worth caring about.

The bill of lading checklist →

Truckload pricing moves with what is available where and when. The same lane can be priced differently in two weeks because of demand, season, fuel and how many trucks are near the pickup.

It is not a published price list. A rate is what that lane costs at the moment it is booked.

Why a quote changes →

Because the trucks near your pickup are already committed. Short notice narrows the search to whatever is left, and what is left is not usually the cheapest option.

Notice widens the search more than anything else you control.

Why last-minute freight costs more →

Charges for work beyond driving the freight from A to B: a liftgate, an inside delivery, a residential address, extra stops, waiting time.

Most of them are avoidable surprises rather than unavoidable costs. They surprise people when the requirement was not mentioned before the truck was dispatched.

Accessorial charges explained →

A charge for a driver held at a facility beyond the free time allowed for loading or unloading.

It is the most common unexpected charge on an invoice, and the most preventable: it is usually about the shipment not being ready when the truck arrives.

How detention works →

Truck Ordered Not Used: a charge when a truck is dispatched to a pickup and there is nothing to load.

It covers the driver's time and the run to get there. Cancelling early enough usually avoids it entirely.

What a TONU is →

Software I built for myself, to run the work of moving your freight: quoting, posting, covering, tracking and closing out a load in one place instead of across an inbox and half a dozen tabs.

The story behind it →

No. It is not something you use. It is what I use.

There is nothing to install, nothing to log into and nothing to learn. You email a shipment; the work behind it happens somewhere you never have to see.

Because the same details were being retyped from an email into one system, then into another, and every retype was somewhere for a detail to go missing.

Reducing that repetitive work leaves more time for the parts that actually need a person: reviewing the market, following up, and dealing with problems before they get bigger.

The story behind it →

It means less time spent rebuilding information you already sent, fewer places for a detail to be lost, and faster answers when you ask where something is.

It does not make a truck drive faster or a rate cheaper. It changes how much of my day goes to administration instead of to your freight.

What you get out of it →

Yes. The six-stage walkthrough follows a shipment from the quote request through to delivery and closeout, with screens from the software at each stage.

Start at stage 01 →

Yes. Ask Jay is at the top of every page, and asking a question is not the start of a sales process.

If the answer would help other shippers too, it may end up as a Resource Center article.

Tell me what you were looking for. The Resource Center is written from the questions people actually ask, so a gap in it is worth knowing about.

Please do. There is a Suggest an Article button at the foot of the Resource Center that opens an email with the subject already written.

Suggestions from people shipping freight are better than a list of topics I think up on my own.

Go to the Resource Center →

Yes. No signup, no account, and nothing you enter is sent anywhere — they run in your browser.

Linear feet, pallet capacity, density, dimensional weight, equipment selection and reefer temperature conversion.

Open the freight calculators →

Yes. Plan the lane, look at the stops and the mileage, and leave it there if that is all you needed.

Mileage from the planner is a planning estimate. Drivers and carriers should confirm commercial-vehicle routing with their own navigation.

Open the Route Planner →