They have the know-how and understanding of the industry, but starting a trucking company requires careful planning. There are three big considerations people need to think about before starting a trucking company.

Choosing a Company Structure

Starting a trucking company will involve registering your company’s name, getting a tax number, and choosing a company structure. For many, a sole proprietorship fits best. Many owner-operators already use this model because of its simplicity.

Business taxes are filed with personal taxes, but the one big drawback is that the business owner takes all responsibility for liabilities. A limited liability company (or LLC) may take more money and effort to get off the ground, but it also offers more legal protection than a sole proprietorship.

Corporations offer the most legal protection for trucking company owners, but they are also the most complex when it comes to costs and taxes. If you are starting a trucking company and want to choose the best company structure for its size, scope, and goals, consult with a business attorney before making a decision.

Starting a Trucking Company Requires Equipment

Every trucking company needs vehicles, tools, computers, and other equipment. For smaller trucking companies that want to keep costs low, leasing equipment is a viable option.

Equipment leasing agreements have low monthly installments, and maintenance is typically covered by the leasing company. The drawback to leasing is that the equipment is not considered “owned,” so it cannot be used as collateral for additional financing.

Purchasing equipment, on the other hand, gives you ownership of the vehicles, computers, and other tools used, but all maintenance and repairs are also the responsibility of the trucking company. Additionally, the cost of purchasing equipment can be a bit steep.

Working Capital and Cash Flow

Working capital is crucial to the success of anyone starting a trucking company. When you launch a trucking company and make those first few shipments, you may be waiting upwards of 30 days to receive payments.

To keep cash flow and working capital high, trucking companies use factoring. Factoring eliminates the waiting time for payments by turning unpaid freight bills into cash within 24 hours. This allows new trucking companies to maintain and grow operations during the first few years after the initial launch.

Express Freight Finance provides comprehensive factoring services nationwide to trucking companies of all sizes. If you are starting a trucking company, talk to the experts at Express Freight Finance to explore our cash flow and working capital solutions.

The post Starting a Trucking Company: 3 Consideration for New Owners appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

1. Planning Routes for Better Fuel Prices

Trip planning is essential to the efficiency of every carrier, but adding in fuel prices can make a big difference. Different states have different fuel prices and taxes on gas. Planning a trip with stops to fill up the tank in locations with lower prices can save a lot of money on fuel expenses.

2. Driving Habits Impact Fuel Expenses

There are two big factors that really eat into fuel expenses. First, driving at top speeds increases fuel consumption. The second is idling. Reducing idling can be a big hurdle to overcome, as most of the time it takes place when truckers are waiting for customers to load or unload shipments.

Drivers and trucking companies are encouraged to work with customers to improve efficiency during loading and unloading times and to reduce idling. As an aside, truckers should be encouraged to use cruise control on long trips and to implement auxiliary power units to improve fuel efficiency.

3. Implement Driver Scorecards

More carriers are using driver scorecards as incentives to reward truckers for following pest practices. Truckers need to be educated on the importance of fuel expenses and how those costs impact everything from profitability down to the ability to get new equipment and salaries.

By using miles per gallon as a metric, driver scorecards allow truckers to see how they compare to others in the fleet and measure their own fuel efficiency.

4. Fuel Purchases

Trucking companies seem to be unable to negotiate the price at the pump, but that doesn’t prevent them from saving money on fuel expenses. By taking advantage of fuel cards, trucking companies can save upwards of 25 cents per gallon.

Some fuel cards even offer big savings on equipment and high-viscosity oils, which also help lower fuel expenses. At Express Freight Finance, we offer a comprehensive fuel card program that works with over 6,800 locations throughout the United States.

Our fuel cards offer savings on equipment, maintenance, and tolls and can be used as lines of credit per truck in your fleet. Contact Express Freight Finance today and start saving on fuel.

The post Cutting Fuel Expenses for Your Trucking Company appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

At Express Freight Finance, we want to help truckers get a jump start on safety with winter driving tips.

1. Keep your truck stocked with supplies

While most drivers keep jumper cables and flares in their trucks, winter weather requires a different set of supplies. Truckers should stock up on things like:

• Tire chains
• A bag of salt or sand
• Extra blankets
• Ice scrapers
• Flashlights
• Gloves
• A change of warm clothing
• Non-perishable foods in case of overnight storms

2. Don’t follow the tail light of the vehicle ahead of you

Fog, heavy snow, sleet, and more distort light and obscure visibility. This means that if you are following the tail lights of the car ahead of you instead of the road, you are too close. Keep a safe distance from other vehicles.

3. Be extra careful on bridges and overpasses

Bridges and overpasses tend to freeze over more quickly than ground-level highways, gathering more black ice which is extremely hazardous.

4. Pay attention to yesterday’s, today’s, and tomorrows weather

Knowing the weather forecast on the day you are driving is extremely important and allows you to plot alternative routes in case of storms. But looking at the previous day’s weather will also give you alerts in case you are driving to an area that just experienced a lot of snow and ice the day before.

5. Anti-gel is your friend

Freezing temperatures can cause diesel fuel to gel, making it difficult for trucks to start and keep running. Stock up on anti-gel early, before the big rush in December and January.

6. Pre-trip checks and diagnostics

Before you head out this winter, make sure you do a thorough once-over on the vehicle. Check tire pressure, lights, batteries, blinkers, and everything you can think of to make sure your truck is in top condition to take on whatever the cold weather brings.

If your vehicle is in good condition, then the chances of you getting into an accident are greatly reduced.

Stay safe out there, from all of us at Express Freight Finance.

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Nearly 50 percent of the physical injuries truckers experience are in their arms, backs, and necks. The majority of those injuries are due to strains and sprains. However, there are a few things truckers can do to reduce physical injuries and stay healthy.

Empty Your Back Pockets

Many drivers carry wallets and other items in their back pockets. When you are sitting for a long time during hauls, the items between your seat and your derriere place pressure on your sciatic nerve. If that nerve becomes pinched, it can cause severe pain in your back, legs, and neck.

Save yourself from future pain and simply empty your pockets before sitting behind the wheel. An ounce of prevention is worth more than a lifetime of medical treatment and physical therapy.

Bring that Yoga Mat with You

Practicing yoga is a great way to keep your muscles loose and prevent strains on the road. Even if you are not into the whole yoga thing, bring a mat so you can do some simple stretching exercises on your breaks or when you start the day.

Just 5–10 minutes is all you need to prevent your muscles from getting sore or cramping up while driving for long periods of time.

Eat Your Vitamins

Many truckers suffer from vitamin deficiency. While it is always better to get your nutrients from healthy food, most truck stops don’t have vitamin-rich eating alternatives to simply grab and go. As an alternative, stocking up on vitamin supplements or a simple multivitamin can do wonders for the body.

Make the Healthy Choice

With most of their time spent in the cab, truckers have limited healthy options. However, if there is time and availability to make a decision to eat better, exercise, and take steps to prevent long-term injuries and health conditions, it makes sense to do so.

This doesn’t mean truckers need to eliminate fast food or exercise constantly, but introducing healthy habits will make you better at your job and help you stick around a lot longer for your loved ones.

The post Staying Healthy on the Open Road: A Guide for Truckers appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

Be Prepared and Professional

The rivalry between truckers and highway patrol, as glamorized by Hollywood in the 1970s, is long behind us. Highway patrol officers are just trying to do their jobs. If you approach them with a professional attitude, you can get right to the heart of the matter and minimize delays.

Also, have any necessary paperwork ready for them to look at if they happen to ask for it. Rummaging around in your cab to find things takes up their time and yours. Some documentation, like IFTA and IRP credentials, can now be shown electronically from your smartphone.

Listen to Directions

Not everything is uniform throughout the country. Ramp signs may be different. The laws governing scale weights may change or require that highway patrols make more frequent checks in various locations. If you are stopped for a simple compliance check, the best thing to do is comply.

Note that there are even apps available that store your last successful scale bypass, so you can show officers when they ask.

Make Sure Your Truck and Driving Don’t Attract Attention

Highway patrol officers are tasked with keeping our roads safe. As such, officers are always on the lookout for visible cues that might be symptoms of larger violations. Missing reflector tape, broken lights, and more can push highway patrol officers to pull over trucks for a full inspection.

Since speeding contributed to over 25% of traffic fatalities in 2017, highway patrol officers are always wary of truckers going over the speed limit or driving erratically.

Stay Calm

Truckers have extremely important jobs, as do highway patrol officers. If you are pulled over, it is not a personal issue that the officer has with you. Their job is to ensure road safety, and that can mean something as simple as a scale check. The calmer you are, the easier it will be for you to think clearly and get back on the road with minimal delays.

The post How to Handle Highway Patrol Stops: A Guide for Truckers appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

You Need a Strategic Plan

When you take the time to put together a strategic plan, you can set realistic goals. This plan tells you where you are right now and points you where it is heading and how fast.

Work with professionals, especially your accountant, to define exactly what you want to accomplish in the next six months, year, five years and so on. Decide who in your trucking business will be responsible for each aspect of the project.

It’s All About Location

Location decisions can be tricky. Research how expansion will affect your employees, customers and suppliers.

Good questions to ask include:

• Can you expand at your current location?
• Do you want to open a second location?
• Would it make sense to completely relocate your business?
• Should you buy or rent?
• What specific problems will growing cause your customers?

Handle Funding the Right Way

Every expansion requires additional funding. If you are serious about growing, keep expansion funds separate from everyday finances.

Look into a variety of ways to fund your growing trucking business. There are a variety of alternative funding lenders who can let you know you are approved in just days, not the weeks that banks typically take.

Having a ready source of quick cash can make expansion possible. Look for a lender that is able to customize the funding to your specific needs and capacities.

Figure Out Your Market Share

It is essential to find out what your competition is doing before you expand. Work with marketing professionals to determine what your actual market share is. You need accurate information in order to make smart decisions.

Though you have a loyal clientele, you need to know more. This sort of complex determination involves checking out competing businesses and seeing what the growth rate is in companies in your area. When you accurately figure this out, you can decide how much growth is possible for your trucking business.

The post When You’re Thinking About Expanding Your Trucking Business Consider These Things appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

For example, every truck driver has the responsibility for and must be qualified to safely operate the vehicle, and to do pre-trip safety inspections, as well as post-trip safety inspections. Three major red flags which could automatically disqualify an applicant from getting a commercial driver license are vision loss, hearing loss, and the need to use insulin at regular intervals. These basic qualifications, as well as those which follow, are all intended to ensure that a driver does not put himself or any other vehicle operators at risk on the road.

Conditions which would disqualify someone from truck driving

• must have full use of feet, legs, hands, and arms, or a medical exemption certifying fitness
• must have no medical history or current diagnosis of diabetes which necessitates the use of insulin
• must not have respiratory problems which could arise to affect the driver while operating a vehicle
• must not have any medical history or current diagnosis of vascular, arthritic, muscular, rheumatic, or neuromuscular disease which could inhibit the ability to safely operate a truck
• must not have a current diagnosis of alcoholism
• must not have any current mental disorders which would have the potential to interfere with vehicle operation
• must be able to see at prescribed distance without the use of glasses or contact lenses, and must not be color blind
• must be able to pass a hearing test
• must be free from narcotics and all other illegal drugs, and cannot have an addiction to prescription drugs
• must not have any type of cardiovascular disease which could interfere with the ability to safely operate a vehicle

Assuming none of these conditions affects an applicant, he/she would then be free to pursue the actual qualifications necessary for a commercial driver’s license, and become a professional truck driver.

The post Truck Driver Health Qualifications appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

In such a mesmerized state, it’s very easy to ignore road signs and traffic conditions which could potentially cause problems. Fortunately, there are a few steps that a professional truck driver can take to alleviate the potential for road hypnosis, and stay alert right through to the desired destination.

Get plenty of fresh air

Getting fresh air is one very simple way of breaking through the monotony and the sameness of driving long distances and long hours. Just opening the windows and catching the fresh breeze being forced through the truck cab, could make all the difference between alertness and drowsiness. Whenever you have time, you should also pull over, stretch your legs and take a walk around a rest area, to get the blood circulating throughout your body and to break the spell of road hypnosis.

Try different entertainments

Almost all trucks have radios installed in them, so the majority of truck drivers do listen to their favorite stations whenever possible. This however, can add to the comfort level of driving, and the likelihood that you become too relaxed or mesmerized. Try switching between several different radio stations, even if the style of music being played is something you don’t care for – thinking about how you dislike it will help to keep you alert.

Maintain a video travel journal

This doesn’t mean jotting down notes as you drive of course, but creating a video record of your travels which you can share with others, or which you can keep for your own enjoyment. It’s a great way to record thoughts and events as you drive between places, and a great way of keeping alert, to gather plenty of information you can share with others.

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1. Befriend Your Dispatcher.Your dispatcher should be your new best friend.  Often, they control who gets choice loads, which equals money in your pocket.
2. Cook Your Own Meals.Just because you are on the road doesn’t mean that you have to eat roadside diner food. You can prepare meals at home and heat them up in a crock pot in your truck.
3. Don’t Turn Down a Load.Never refuse a load because you think that it’s too small or going to an undesirable location.  By taking every job, you demonstrate dedication and could end up with some choice loads at your next destination.
4. Stay in Shape.Sitting most of the day can be a recipe for poor health.  Commit to staying in shape by exercising in short bursts a few times a day and keeping to a healthy diet.
5. Stay Safe!Always pay extra attention to safety when loading and unloading. Get out and look before backing up, as that extra minute could prevent a potential disaster.
6. Respect the Safety Department.Your company’s safety department may seem overly cautious and overbearing, but safety is important and accidents can put a company out of business.  Remember that you are all on the same team!
7. Know Your Company.Get to know everything about the company that you are driving for and its various positions.  There might be other divisions of the company that interest you as a career choice or that can help you expand your skills.
8. Hard Work Pays Off.Your ultimate success in truck driving is going to depend on how much work you put into the job.  If you are putting in extra effort, it will always be noticed and rewarded.
9. Get Professional Training First.Always obtain professional truck driver training first and the Over the Road (OTR) experience will take care of itself.
10. Always Be on Time!Drivers that are on time and meet or exceed their deadlines are the most successful.  Learn to manage your pickup and drop off schedules like a pro.

The post Tips for Trucking Newbies appeared first on Express Freight Finance.

That being the case, as a trucking company owner, you would be well-advised to demonstrate genuine appreciation for your team of truck drivers, and do your best to show them how important they are to the company. Here are some ways you can do that:

• Provide healthy eating options – everyone knows how unhealthy it can be to eat fast food on the road all the time, so provide your team members with gift cards to restaurants where healthier food choices are available.
• Make it fun – most people don’t exactly think of truck driving as fun, but if you can spice things up at work by arranging friendly competitions, it can go a long way toward breaking the normal monotony. Make sure to offer worthwhile prizes for these fun contests, so that your drivers are motivated to participate.
• Truck wash coupons – most drivers take great pride in their rigs and want them to always be looking clean and new. By providing them with truck wash coupons, you can give them a sense of pride in their truck and in their job.
• Offer extra benefits – even if you can’t offer a full package of impressive benefits, anything that you can provide your drivers with toward their health insurance will make them feel better about themselves and about working for your company.
• Reward loyalty – initiate a loyalty program that rewards drivers for staying with you for specific time periods, and make those rewards really appealing, e.g. pay increase, vacation time, etc.
• Company party – to offset the natural loneliness of the truck driver, schedule a regular company party where all drivers can socialize in a relaxed setting, at company expense. This is not only a great team-building exercise, but it should make drivers feel good about the company they’re working for.

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