Onboarding
How our hotshot dispatch works, from application to first load
Here is how hotshot dispatch works with us: six stops from your application to a load on the deck. You set the rules once: lanes, home time, minimum rate. After that, every load comes to you to approve before it is booked, and the paperwork stays on our side of the phone.
The route
Six stops to your first booked load
About a minute
Step 1: Apply
You
Tap your setup, tell us where your authority stands and leave a mobile number.
Our dispatcher
Look up your MC and USDOT on FMCSA before we call, so the first conversation is about loads, not paperwork.
After you apply
Step 2: Setup call
You
Walk us through your truck, trailer, deck length, the lanes you like, home time and your minimum rate.
Our dispatcher
Write it all into your profile, including the stickers: truck GVWR and GCWR, trailer GVWR. That is what every weight check runs against.
Day 1 to 2
Step 3: Agreement and documents
You
Sign the month-to-month dispatch agreement and send your carrier documents.
Our dispatcher
Confirm the fee in writing (7% of gross, 6% per truck for 2+ trucks, limited-time) and file everything in one carrier packet.
Before the first offer
Step 4: Broker setup packets
You
Nothing extra. Keep your insurance agent's number handy for certificate requests.
Our dispatcher
Send your packet to brokers that move hotshot freight in your lanes, so a booking isn't held up by setup.
When the right load shows up
Step 5: First load offer
You
Get the offer with rate, miles, weight and windows. Approve it, counter it or pass.
Our dispatcher
Search boards and call our broker and shipper contacts, negotiate the rate, and check weight against your ratings first.
Every load after
Step 6: Haul, report, repeat
You
Drive. Send the signed BOL and a photo of the load secured when we ask.
Our dispatcher
Handle check calls, chase detention and TONU, plan the reload before you unload, and send your weekly report.
Have these ready
Documents you need for dispatch
Brokers ask for the same handful of papers before they load a new carrier. Send them to us once and we build a carrier packet that goes out with every broker setup. Still getting your authority? Here is how to start a hotshot business, step by step.
MC and USDOT numbers
Active authority under your own company. If yours is pending, we prep everything else meanwhile.
W-9
For your business name and tax ID. Brokers ask for it in every setup packet.
Certificate of insurance
Auto liability and cargo, with your agent's contact so brokers can be added as certificate holders.
Notice of assignment (if you factor)
So brokers pay your factoring company. Skip it if you don't factor.
Truck and trailer details
Door-jamb sticker (GVWR, GCWR if printed), trailer VIN plate (GVWR), deck length and trailer type.
Your rules
Your lanes, home time and minimum rate, set once
Lanes
Where you like to run, where you won't go, and how far from home is too far.
Home time
Out Monday to Friday, two weeks out and four days home, or whatever your schedule is. We plan loads to land you there.
Minimum rate
Your floor, per mile counting empty miles, set from your cost per mile. We don't bring you offers under it.
Freight you avoid
Loads you don't want to tarp, chain or handle. Noted once, respected on every search.
Not sure where your floor is? Work out your cost per mile first; the dispatch fee calculator shows what the fee adds to it.
You approve every load
Nothing gets booked without your OK
Every offer shows the freight, weight, deck space, loaded and empty miles, pickup and delivery windows and the rate per loaded mile and per total mile. Try it on the example.
Approve it and we book it. Counter and we go back to the broker. Pass and we keep looking, and the reason goes on your profile so the next offers fit better. Dedicated or contract work follows the same rule; our guide to hotshot contracts explains how those differ from spot loads.
Abilene, TX → Shreveport, LA
- Freight
- Skid steer + 2 attachments
- Weight
- 9,200 lb
- Deck
- Needs 24 ft of deck
- Loaded / empty miles
- 365 / 42
- Pickup
- Tomorrow 08:00-10:00
- Delivery
- Tomorrow by 17:00
Day to day
What a dispatched day looks like
- 06:30
Morning check-in
Text: where you are, hours left, any issues. We confirm today's pickup.
- 10:15
Loaded
You send the BOL photo. We update the broker and start on the reload.
- 14:00
Reload offer
Next load sent to you with the full numbers. You approve from the cab.
- 17:30
Delivered
POD photo to us, we send it to the broker and log the load in your weekly report.
EXAMPLE day. Times shift with your loads and your hours of service.
Weekly report
Every week, the numbers in one place
| Load | Gross | Loaded | Empty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene, TX → Shreveport, LA | $1,150 | 365 | 42 |
| Shreveport, LA → Tyler, TX | $520 | 105 | 18 |
| Tyler, TX → Oklahoma City, OK | $1,180 | 295 | 35 |
| Oklahoma City, OK → Wichita Falls, TX | $640 | 150 | 0 |
EXAMPLE numbers to show the format, not a typical week.
Leaving
Cancel with 30 days notice
The agreement is month to month. Give 30 days notice in writing and that is it. While you are with us, the fee is 7% of gross on loads you haul and nothing on loads you don't; the full pricing breakdown has the math.
New to the business? Start with what hotshot trucking is, or go back to the overview of hotshot dispatch with us.
FAQ
Onboarding questions
How long until my first load is booked?
Once your documents are in, we start searching and calling right away. How fast the first load books depends on your lanes, your equipment, how old your authority is and the market that week, so we won't put a number on it. You'll hear from us either way.
What do I need to start with a hotshot dispatcher?
Active MC and USDOT numbers, a W-9, a certificate of insurance, your truck and trailer ratings, and a notice of assignment if you use factoring. If your authority isn't active yet, our guide to starting a hotshot business covers every registration.
How do you keep in touch during the week?
Calls and texts for load offers and anything time-sensitive, email for rate confirmations and the weekly report. A dispatcher is reachable nights and weekends, when a lot of hotshot freight gets posted.
What happens if a broker cancels or keeps me waiting?
We file the TONU, detention or layover claim with the broker and chase it until it is settled. What is payable, and from when, depends on the terms in that load's rate confirmation, which is one more reason we read every rate con before you approve it.
How do I cancel?
Give 30 days notice in writing. The agreement is month to month, so there is no term to buy out.
Next step
Start at stop one: apply in about a minute
7% of gross for one truck, 6% per truck for 2+ trucks (limited-time). No haul, no pay. No setup fee, no contract, cancel with 30 days notice. You approve every load.
Start with your setup: