For fleets of 2 to 10 trucks
A fleet dispatcher who runs every truck by its own card
Mixed fleets need more than one dispatcher booking the same lane for everyone. We plan each rig for its equipment, driver and home time, keep the fleet from chasing its own tail, and charge 4% of gross per truck while the limited-time fleet rate lasts.
- Truck 1: Car hauler4%: $280.00
net $6,720.00 - Truck 2: Flatbed4%: $220.00
net $5,280.00 - Truck 3: Flatbed4%: $208.00
net $4,992.00 - Truck 4: Hotshot7%: $224.00
net $2,976.00
Gross figures are EXAMPLE inputs. Fleet rate is limited-time. 26 ft box trucks and hotshots stay at 7%.
Run your fleet through the calculator
The calculator beside the headline starts with a mixed fleet we see a lot: a car hauler, two flatbeds and a hotshot. Change the weekly gross for each truck, add your own rigs or remove ours, and switch the age of your MC. Each truck shows its fee and what it keeps, and the dark bar totals the fleet.
Two rules shape the numbers. First, a fleet on an MC under 6 months pays 7% on every truck until the authority turns 6 months old. Second, 26 ft box trucks and hotshots stay at 7% in any fleet, because their smaller loads take more booking work per dollar. Everything else in a fleet of 2 or more pays 4% while the limited-time fleet rate runs.
Why fleets outsource dispatch
Somewhere between two and five trucks, the owner stops driving full time and starts living on the phone. Every truck needs a reload, every driver needs home time, every broker wants check calls. An in-house dispatcher is a salary, a desk and a person who takes vacations. Outsourced truck dispatch is a percentage that only applies when trucks haul.
The other reason is coordination. Two of your own trucks bidding on the same lane, or both heading home empty on the same Friday, is money left on the road. One desk that sees the whole fleet stops that before it happens.
How we run a mixed fleet
Every truck has its own card
Equipment, deck length or tank specs, the driver's license and endorsements, home day, floor rate and lanes to avoid. A load is checked against that truck's card before anyone calls.
The fleet has one plan
We look at all your trucks together each morning. Trucks don't bid against each other, reloads are spread across brokers and home time is staggered so the fleet keeps earning.
Rig knowledge on the desk, not in one head
Car hauler deck plans, tanker endorsements, oversize permits and livestock time limits are written into each truck's file and checklists. Whoever picks up the phone at 2 AM works from the same file.
Approvals the way you want them
Approve every load yourself, or let trusted drivers approve their own inside your limits. The rate con always goes to your company inbox, because the carrier signs it.
Drivers talk to the desk
Drivers call the desk for load details, delays and breakdowns, so you aren't the switchboard. You choose which problems get escalated to you straight away.
One report, every truck
Every Friday: loads, gross, loaded and empty miles, rate per mile and fee for each truck, plus the fleet total. Underperforming trucks show up quickly, so you can fix the lane or the plan.
What the Friday fleet report shows
One line per truck, one total for the fleet. The example below is made up to show the layout, but the columns are the real ones. Empty miles and rate per mile are the two numbers fleet owners look at first, because they show which truck is working hardest for the least money.
| Truck | Loads | Gross | Loaded mi | Empty mi | Rate per loaded mile | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Car hauler | 2 | $7,000 | 1,840 | 210 | $3.80 | $280 |
| 2 Flatbed | 3 | $5,500 | 2,050 | 180 | $2.68 | $220 |
| 3 Flatbed | 3 | $5,200 | 1,990 | 260 | $2.61 | $208 |
| 4 Hotshot | 4 | $3,200 | 1,420 | 150 | $2.25 | $224 |
EXAMPLE report. Not rate data. Hotshot billed at 7%.
How drivers and the desk talk
Each driver gets the desk number and talks to us directly about load details, appointment changes, delays and breakdowns. That keeps the owner off the phone for routine things. You set the rules for what reaches you straight away: a breakdown, a refused load, a rate under a set number or anything involving a claim.
Drivers hear about loads the same way an owner-operator does. We explain the lane, the pickup and delivery windows and anything unusual, and they approve within the limits you gave us or pass the decision to you. Nobody is surprised by a load they didn't hear about first.
Fleet problems we fix first
- Trucks competing for the same freight. We spread trucks across lanes and brokers so your own fleet doesn't bid against itself.
- Everyone empty on Friday. Home time is staggered and the last load of the week is chosen to land each truck near home.
- One truck quietly losing money. The weekly report shows rate per mile and empty miles by truck, so a weak lane gets changed early.
- Paperwork piling up. We chase bills of lading and delivery photos from each driver so payment isn't held up.
- The owner as switchboard. Routine calls go to the desk; only the problems you choose come to you.
Adding trucks without adding chaos
Growth breaks fleets in predictable places: a new driver who doesn't know the lanes, a new trailer type nobody has booked before, and an owner who now spends every evening on the phone. We set up the new truck's card, update your packets with the brokers that suit its equipment and fold it into the fleet plan in the first week.
Adding a different rig is where mixed fleets get the most from a specialty desk. Moving from flatbeds into car hauling or adding a cattle pot means new customers, new rules and new paperwork. We already book that freight, so the new truck doesn't spend its first month learning on your dime.
The fee for each new truck follows the same rule as the rest: 4% for a fleet of 2 or more on an MC older than 6 months, and 7% for a 26 ft box truck or hotshot. Check what each truck really costs to run with the trucking cost per mile calculator.
"One dispatcher can't know every rig."
Fair point, and it's why we don't rely on one person's memory. Each rig's rules live in its card and checklists: the endorsements a tank load needs, the 28-hour limit on a cattle run, the permit plan for an oversize move, the deck plan on a car hauler. Every load is checked against them before it is offered.
The second safeguard is you. Every load still needs a yes from you or a driver you trust, and the rate con comes to your inbox. If something about a load doesn't fit a truck, you will see it before it is booked, not after.
What it costs compared with in-house dispatch
An in-house dispatcher is a fixed cost every week, busy or slow. Our fee is a percentage of the gross your trucks actually haul, so a slow week costs less and a truck in the shop costs nothing. Full details are on the dispatch fee page.
Specialty fleets: what changes
Car hauling fleets live on auction calendars and dealer relationships. We plan which truck covers which auction, keep decks full on both legs and make sure each truck's cargo coverage matches the cars it carries. Two haulers at the same auction on the same day should load different buyers, not split the same ones.
Tanker and hazmat fleets need every driver's endorsements tracked, along with tank test dates, product history and wash locations. A load only goes to a truck whose driver holds the right endorsements and whose last product doesn't clash with the next one.
Heavy haul fleets juggle trailers with different deck heights, permit accounts and escort schedules. We match each machine to the trailer that keeps it legal on the route, so permits stay simple and escort costs stay sensible.
Ag fleets with hoppers, cattle pots or dump trucks swing hard with the season. We plan harvest rushes so every truck works, then line up off-season freight early so the slow months don't empty the yard.
Start with the whole fleet or one truck
Some fleets hand us every truck at once. Others start with the one or two trucks that sit the most and add the rest once they see the weekly reports. Either way works, and the fleet rate applies as soon as two or more trucks on an MC older than 6 months are dispatched with us.
Fleets with slow-paying brokers often pair dispatch with factoring. Read about factoring for trucking fleets with RTS Financial.
Deal me in: 3 taps
Pick all three and your fee shows here. No haul, no pay.
Dispatch my fleet at 4%Fleet dispatch questions
01Can you dispatch mixed equipment in one fleet?
Yes. A fleet with a car hauler, two flatbeds and a hotshot is normal for us. Each truck keeps its own card with its equipment, the driver's license and endorsements, home time and floor rate, and loads are matched truck by truck. The fleet gets one weekly report with every truck on it.
02Do you work nights and weekends for fleets?
Yes. The dispatch desk runs 24/7, nights and weekends. Fleets have more trucks on the road at odd hours, so a breakdown at 3 AM, a late shipper on Saturday or a reload question on Sunday reaches a person. Drivers get the desk number, and you decide which calls should come to you first.
03What happens when I add a truck?
Tell us about the truck, the trailer and the driver, and we set up its card and update your carrier packets with brokers. The fee for the new truck follows the same rule as the rest of the fleet: 4% once the MC is past 6 months, or 7% for a 26 ft box truck or hotshot.
04Who approves loads in a fleet?
You decide. Some owners approve every load themselves. Others let experienced drivers approve their own loads within limits you set, like a minimum rate or a set of states. Either way, nothing is booked without a yes, and the rate confirmation goes to your company because the carrier signs it.
05How many trucks can one dispatcher handle?
It depends on the freight. A fleet of regional reefers on repeat lanes takes less phone time per truck than a mix of hotshots chasing partial loads. We plan desk time around your actual trucks and lanes rather than promising a fixed number, so no truck sits waiting for attention.
06How much does outsourced fleet dispatch cost?
4% of gross per truck for fleets of 2 or more trucks on an MC older than 6 months, as a limited-time rate. 26 ft box trucks and hotshots stay at 7%, and every truck pays 7% while the MC is under 6 months. No setup fee, no minimums, month-to-month, cancel with 30 days notice.
Every truck endorsed for the work it gets
Send the fleet's details. We build a card for each truck and call with loads that fit, and you approve them.