A new study has been published by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) on detention time and the impact that delays can have on truck drivers. If it seems like delays have been getting worse in the past couple of years, that’s because they have – by a lot.
ATRI conducted a survey of over 1,900 drivers and carriers between 2014 and 2018. Based off of the responses, detention time increased dramatically. And it looks like shippers and receivers are taking the lion’s share of the blame.
Over the four-year period, the survey found that both the number and duration of delays increased. For example, there was a 27.4% increase in the number of delays at a shipper or receiver that lasted 6 hours or more. In fact, the frequency of every category of delay increased.
The ATRI found that most drivers considered a wait of more than two hours to be excessive, but 25.8% of all drop offs/pick ups lasted at least two hours. Further, 9.3% of delays lasted over six hours.
Drivers who haul refrigerated trailers were by far the most likely to experience delays. According to the surveyed drivers, reefer haulers reported delays of four or more hours 36.5% of the time.
In the report, ATRI blames “inefficiencies” for the delays including understaffed facilities, limited dock capacity, and a failure to adopt technologies which could help reduce wait times.
In fairness to shippers and receivers, we should note that the ATRI is the research arm of the mega-carrier lobbying group American Trucking Association. This report comes just as the FMCSA is asking for input from the industry on detention times and what to do about it. You only have until September 9th to comment!
Source: truckinginfo, overdrive, freightwaves, truckingresearch, overdrive
J says
Give the shippers and receivers a 2 hour window or force fines the detention pay isnt working most times they blow it of
JohnT says
For 25 an hour what million dollar company wouldn’t
Lenwood Richardson says
It’s the English thing. Most loders can not speak it so thay don’t care.
Blue Moon says
I’m assuming your complaining about illegals. Blame companies and HR for hiring them.
les_gvt says
then there is also the issue that frequently- the shipper/receiver and driver cant understand each other. earlier today- 6 drivers in line- 2 English, 2 spanish, 1 Albanian and 1 Hindi? how many languages should people have to know?
Robert Graham says
Only English per federal law if they can not speak and understand it they can not operate a motor vehicle of any kind on US roads
Bob Neecome says
Cuz we know that works
Robert Breslin says
LOL! Good one!
Robert Hansen says
In my opinion the problem with detention at shippers and receivers is they hire a third-party lumper company to do the loading and unloading. They are paid hourly wages and if it takes 5 hours to do one truck they get paid I think the pay structure should change to where they only get paid the quicker and more efficiently they unload and load trailers not hourly
Joe says
When you have idiots making 12 bucks an hr to unload a truck do you think they care?
Also, why do refer drivers have to wait for recievers ro repallatize freight?
Costco doesn’t make drivers wait and I don’t care about OS&D, receiver can take photos of overages,damages and send photos…they can deal with it
Connie Bailey says
Joe, I hate to bust your bubble, but COSTO have made me wait over 12 hours, and that’s why I told my dispatcher to not send me back to COSTO! I tell you some more who has made me wait. Universal Pure in Lincoln, NE. made me wait from 10:52 A.M. to 10:00 P.M. before loading my trailer; LSI in Eldridge, IA. made me wait from 10:52 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. the next day and AWG made me wait from 5:37 P.M. to 12:00 Noon the next morning before UNloading my trailer.
Andrew H says
Grocery warehouses are the worst. Usually with stupid dock hours that makes finding parking literally impossible afterwards. Like the HEB in San Antonio or Houston.
Robert Breslin says
Here is the root problem. The FMCSA has NO authority over shippers and receivers, so enforcement of any detention agreement is up to the broker, trucking company or individual (independent) driver. Shippers and receivers are governed by only ONE RULE – Money – keeping it.
You want real detention, real efficiency? No more 1 loader for every 5 trucks? Get Congress to bring shippers & receivers under the FMCSA. Good luck with that as long as the ATA et al are lobbying them (means bribing them).
les_gvt says
make recievers such as Kroger, Tom Thumb, etc start paying detention fees will solve a lot of the problem. Somehow- it seems grocery facilities are the only ones that have a sign up saying they do not pay detention- and they refuse to time stamp your BOL showing the finish time. I have even had them move their clocks when they have seen me taking pics of it to show departure times
Samuel Mercurio says
Kroger in shelbyville Indiana is the worst. Lumper serves mert doesn’t care how long you sit.
mike cole says
You want to implement regulations there you go 2hrs then at least $50 a hr after that watch how fast it will get fixed( and there your safety issues) alot of shippers and receivers wont let you sit or sleep in you truck
Ken says
I think the biggest problem is the trucking company are afraid to make the warehouse pay up, trucking companies are afraid they’ll lose the business of that warehouse so they put in their contact that they won’t charge them for detention so us as the driver suffers !!
Bill says
Find a better company to work for. One that will back you up! Sheesh!
Tim says
More often than not, it is a lying brokers that steal your detention pay. This is why they always call you up wanting to know your arrival and departure time. 15 minutes over and they collect on your detention time. Think about how many loads they collect in one day.
waynesworld says
I give customers 2hr window then they get charged but I let them know that, in 2hrs I go back to shipping and ask what’s up or I’m leaving, few times I had them release my dot bumper and I rolled out which seriously pissed them off but oh well, delivery well I gotta sit but again after 2hrs the charge clock ticks away lol
Bill says
🤣👍
kc says
Minimum detention should be $100 an hr and lay over should be $300 no less that should be the starting point. To give a shipper or receiver 2hrs to accomplish unloading a trailer or filling it up is more than ample time. Time to get their attention. Fair is Fair for services rendered.
Jeanette M Stampo says
It shouldn’t take more than 2 hours to load/unload a truck. There should be a universal fee of $50/hr for each hour over that threshold. If 2 more hours go by then the fee should go up to $100/hr
Keep going up $50 for every 2 hours or portion thereof.
Lady Doe says
Martinez don’t want to hear about the real problems that drivers face everyday. That’s why he came up with Shifting numbers around in the same 14 hr rule that won’t help at all. They could care less about what we need. One thing I do know will make them listen. Go HOME for a week. Look it’s still going to be a year before they change anything! Now do that look like they y concern about anything. HELL TO THE NO!
Robert Graham says
The 14hr rule and the on the min. Computer log book are the problem we as drivers really don’t know it shippers and receivers pay detention time or not as far as we know they are and the boss puts it in their own pocket oh I’m sorry what am I thinking we live in a perfect world.
Ron Wood says
I worked for a company that charged the shipper if I got held over an hour. The rule was you had to be on time, and call dispatch right when you arrive. The clock was started. I was at a GM plan at 5:30 PM.I called right in. I was told at the guard house to back up to a certain door, and put down the dock plate. It was an Expedited hot load. The dock worker told me that I was not going to get unloaded until 12 midnight. They only had parts to last until 9 PM. They ran out, and I got blamed, but I told dispatch the guys name. He told the the shipper his name. I got paid $150.00 wait time by the shipper. I was unloaded at 11:30PM. The dock worker really got in trouble for it too .
JohnT says
Brokers are responsible for many delays. In their greed they push delivery at unathorized times. They lie to companies at pickup and delivery times. They double and triple list loads.
JohnT says
I will add that companies in their greed and cost cutting efforts fail to verify the pick up and delivery times of the loads they get from brokers
Mike says
Why is the FMCSA involved? It’s not a safety issue. It’s a labor issue. If truckers had some backing by the labor department that would help.
Such as mandatory pay methods for various circumstances – such as hourly pay at the dock once the truck stops.
However, remember they killed Jimmy Hoffa (whoever they is).
Steve says
NO why should I give up 2 hrs of my time when I get to a shipper or receiver do there employees give up 2hrs of there time NO so when I get there I should be able go on the clock too. But that’s why I don’t pull a refer or a van .
OneEyeOpen says
Paid by the mile companies couldn’t care less if you get delayed by a week or two..it cost them nothing to let you rot ..average truck drivers pay when you include detention and loss of drive time about 8$ an hour x 70 hours… no thanks
woofbeast says
This could mostly be fixed by an Executive Order forbidding receivers to detain the driver while they count and receive into their system.
The driver’s presence makes zero difference to the count in nearly all cases.
This simple change would save millions of man hours every week and be a significant boost to the economy.
randy l boan says
The pay should start as by the hour for everyone as soon as the truck is there at the appointment time. $25.00 an hour per Driver and $100.00 an hour for owner operators.That should have been in the FMCSA bill for ELDs. and no more of this FCFS bs.
David Hendrickson says
None of this will affect the shipper or receiver unless the carriers start to get together and force the issue. Penalties should rack up on the carrier and make it $50/hr for waiting. Dock time kills my time which in turn kills my $$. Now it would be up to the carrier to penalize their client. doubtful but one could hope, just like one could hope that the cost of shipping would go up and add more to our pockets instead of the carriers.
Gryphon says
I will give you the name of the company causing most of those delays…CAPSTONE LOGISTICS…they are a third party lumper service based out of Georgia but found all over the country. In every instance of long delays of 6 hours or more, they were the reason behind the delay. In at least two of those instances, my hours of service had expired and was forced off the property. Luckily a safehavan was located, but how long before a driver delayed by this company and forced off the property of the customer is involved in a fatality accident. I now get the names of the employee(s) who unloaded, the manager of the Capstone crew as well as the name of the individual instructing me to leave. If they ask why, I simply say…just in the off chance there’s an accident the lawyer will want the names of those that kept me here past my legal driving hours and forced me from the property after excessive delay. I also have a picture of a sign posted at one customers property that spelled it out word for word that they dont care how long of a wait the driver had or that the driver is out of hours, they stated this is private property and will call law enforcement to have the driver removed. Some readers might recognize the sign if they ever unloaded in Baton Rouge, LA. Now I just refuse loads to grocers and others who use Capstone Logistics.
Big Mike Pals says
Its stealing !!
Plain an simple . just think if things were turned around.
These big companies would be having a fit! Stick ur maybe so after 2 HR. Detention up there ass! 1 HR. After that $100.00 cash in my hand every HR on the hour. What other industry do you sit around for free??
I miss out on about a grand a week because of this b.s. It needs to stop immediately. I never signed up for this nor did I sign a contract for this but I’m the one getting screwed and doing all the work!