What’s the most frustrating part of getting paid after a load?

Build a tool that cattle prods the left testicle of slow paying customers.

 

I'd say all of the above. For starters in this economy that is extremely difficult to stay afloat is keeping the cash flow in the green. Even after running a good week of $6k but you have backed up fuel card bills, truck maintenance etc. Certain Factoring Companies have their issues that seem to snowball down the hill with the carrier. My Factoring company as of late had a lot of missed payments from brokers they told me with invoices over 60 days so they're now disregarded. Times are rough so it's difficult to work with the ones (brokers) who can't be factored because of their bad credit. Finding decent freight loads are also a challenge because of the over capacity of trucks in the market. So even if you have a reasonable good load paying $2.40 cpm for 2400 miles the reload lane might be only $1.75 cpm for that backhaul (with a credible broker who's credit is in good standings) so it becomes a jingling act. You're average just dropped to $2.07 cpm when your cost for operations is $1.85 cpm. A miniscule profit, because a broker who's redflagged by your Factoring company might say their paying $2.20 cpm for the same lane but you can't trust their past practices regarding credit. Many will talk big and say, ' Why even use a Factoring company, blah blah blah ..' but the reality is Factoring Companies have saved me from some bad brokers when other carriers used and never got paid or had to run them down for their money. A couple went out of business for that reason alone because they hadn't cash flow in their bank accounts to get them to the next month.

 

Honestly, 5 weeks ago when it was really slow and I did some local work I took a chance and found 2 different Brokers. Both female agents that were as nice as they get. It was for extremely low rates $380 and $430 but I only drove 130 miles to get back home for the 1st one and the other one was a local city job transferring a small company to move with a few trips from one location to the next. I had some errands to run at home and spend time with the family that week so it workout out and they never qualified with my factoring company so I took a chance. Both paid the same day. Problem with the 1st one was in a tight squeeze for their freight being moved but a box truck canceling last minute so I took the work. Unfortunately, because they deal with small LTL shipments unless I'm local it's not really for me considering I run a 53' Ft Dry Van and some places are not designed for my equipment. I've probably worked with over 300 freight brokerages and have always found the smaller ones to be reasonable on the rates but might lack the credit approval with factoring companies. However, a good-looking lady with a nice voice still might short a carrier on a shipment so it's a risking situation. I figure, bigger payments with bigger brokers who have good credit usually (not always) could be a lesser payout but.. at the end of the day a guaranteed payout. Credibility from small brokers as a Small Carrier is a niche situation in most cases.

 

No, not just smaller brokers. I don't want to put any brokers names on blast but there are some extremely large ones mentioned in these forums alot that are on the 'Don't work with them' list regarding Factoring. Because of the obvious reasons that they either pay past 90 days, or don't pay at all and have super below the barrel low freight rates. It's a good, guide from Load boards credit reports but I've found Factoring companies work on a different scale. I've seen some larger Brokerages who might have a below credit score on the loadboard however they're 'Approved' and in the green with my Factoring company. It can also go the other way as well. However, a carrier needs to concentrate on what concerns their guaranteed payment at the end of the day.

 

I’ve found some load boards will post days to pay, along with credit worthiness. Definitely a win win for weeding out the trash.

The slow paying companies do this for a reason. They gain interest on the money sitting in the bank and will hold it for as long as possible. The interest is never passed on to the owner op.

More people should be putting in claims against the company’s surety bond. Payment for a job should be within day 2, and one week at most. These 15 day to 30 day waiting periods are a joke.