Six Hacks to Cut Down on Expenses

The cost of running a small trucking business is already huge, and fuel makes up almost 40% of the overall cost of running a commercial truck.

This seems like too large of an impact to not have some options to reduce fuel costs. As you might suspect, there are savings options. They just aren’t as advertised or obvious as one may think.

With the price of diesel going up, we want to help you combat the rising cost of diesel to have the least amount of impact on your bottom line?

Seasonal diesel price increases are real, and we don’t like them.

Every carrier is faced with seasonal increases in the price of diesel fuel. With the severe weather, our nation has been experiencing last winter, along with shutdowns in oil pipelines and refineries, it’s only going to get worse. Just today, diesel prices were reportedly back up to $2.87 per gallon.

This is a far cry from the $2.40 per gallon from just a few months ago. In no time, we will likely be back to over $3.00 per gallon!

We’re all tired of paying a lot of money for tires, too.

Most carriers replace steering tires every 12 to 18 months. At $500 per tire, most owners would appreciate a little relief.

Most carriers replace drive tires every 2 to 3 years. If you have a small fleet, you are probably replacing tires every month on one rig or another.

Now let’s do the math. 40% of the cost to run a commercial truck is fuel, then add in the cost of replacing tires often, and most of your bottom line revenue is gone right out of the gate.

Fuel and tire discount cards can help… a lot.

What other options do small trucking businesses have?

One option for trucking companies is to get a discount fuel card that also provides related discounts to help with the trucking journey.

We have discovered that taking advantage of fuel cards can have a massive impact on your bottom line over time. It is something that can often be overlooked as having that much of an impact on a small trucking business, but the numbers tell us otherwise. With fixed discounts of 5.5¢ to 10¢ per gallon at the big box fuel stops and wholesale plus 6¢ per gallon (as high as 60¢ per gallon) at cost plus fuel stops, it adds up to big savings.

If that’s not enough proof for you? Check out the other benefits that fuel cards offer:

Discounts

1. If you only fuel at the big box fuel stops, you save up to 10¢ per gallon. For the average carrier, that’s a cost savings of $1,200 per truck per year.
2. If you want the biggest fuel discounts and are willing to fill up at a fuel stop with fewer amenities, the discounts could be as high as 60¢ per gallon. That could amount to over $7,000 per truck per year.
3. With the discounts on tires with our fuel card, you could save up to $75 to $100 per tire. That’s not chump change! The discounts are available on many of the major tire brands: Goodyear, Yokohama, Michelin, and BF Goodrich, to name a few.
4. Save on maintenance, wireless services, and more!
5. Not to mention, using the card can help manage funds disbursed to your drivers and simplify fuel tax reporting.

Truck management

Full control over every card issued. With EFF’s fuel card, you will have full control over every card issued to your trucks/drivers—you control how much is available and what can be purchased with each card.

1. Funds are disbursed directly to your EFF fuel card. If you are an EFF factoring client, having funds disbursed to your EFF fuel card extends your invoice submission time and provides the fastest and least expensive way to gain access to your money.
2. Hassle-free fuel reporting for interstate truckers If you are running interstate, then you know what a hassle fuel reporting can be. EFF’s fuel card can help simplify your reporting since all of your fueling data is captured on a per-card basis. It can make your job much easier!

Yep, all this in one card! 

Get a handle on disbursing cash for fuel to your drivers. If you want to dig in further, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Express Freight Finance: smarter by the mile