Link 01Oversize and heavy haul

Oversize load dispatch with permits and escorts on the rate con

A heavy haul rate can look excellent and still lose money. The linehaul is only one line. Permits in every state, escort vehicles, a route survey, tolls and oversize fees, travel-time limits that add days: if any of those aren't on the rate con, they come out of your pocket. Our oversize load dispatch prices every line before you see the offer.

We work with specialized heavy haul brokers, check their records, and get permits, escorts and surveys written in. You confirm or refuse each load. The broker sends the rate con straight to you, you sign it in your company name, and the broker pays you directly.

Quote my heavy haulLowboy, RGN, double drop, stretch.

Lines every heavy haul rate con needs
Linehaul rate
Permits per state, and who orders them
Escorts: who hires, who pays, how many
Route survey, if required
Tolls and oversize fees
Detention, layover and TONU
Payment terms

Link 02The quote sheet

The heavy haul quote sheet: what's on the rate con, and what isn't

Here's an EXAMPLE quote for a wide excavator crossing three states. Enter your own permit quotes and costs, then tick which lines the broker has agreed to pay on the rate con. Anything left off turns red: that's money you'd be paying to haul someone else's freight. Watch the “you keep” number as you tick and untick escorts and the survey.

EXAMPLE quote · 12 ft wide excavator · 3 states

Linehaul rate

State permits (your quotes)
On the rate con, paid by the broker
Escort vehicles
On the rate con, paid by the broker
Route survey
On the rate con, paid by the broker
Tolls and oversize fees
On the rate con, paid by the broker

Rate con gross: $5,960
Your costs (all lines): -$2,210
Our fee (5% of gross): -$298.00
You keep: $3,452.00

Red pen

Escort vehicles: $1,100 comes out of your pocket unless it's written in.
Route survey: $350 comes out of your pocket unless it's written in.

Why every line has to be written down

On heavy haul, the extras can add up to a large share of the linehaul. A broker who says “we'll take care of escorts” on the phone and leaves them off the rate con hasn't agreed to anything you can collect. Written lines are payable lines. Verbal promises are favors, and favors get forgotten when the invoice arrives.

How our fee applies

Our fee is a percentage of the rate con gross, the same rule as every truck; lumper reimbursements are the only exclusion. The sheet shows it on the gross including reimbursed lines, so you see the honest number. If you'd rather have permits and escorts paid directly by the broker instead of reimbursed through you, we can ask for that.

How we build a heavy haul offer

When a broker has an oversize move, we start with the dimensions, weight and pickup and delivery points, then work out which states the route crosses and what each one is likely to require. We get permit quotes or confirm who orders them, price escorts for each state that needs them, check whether a survey is likely, and estimate the travel days under permit hours. Only then do we counter the linehaul. The offer you see lists every line, the total, the expected days on the road and what you'd keep. If the broker won't put a cost line in writing, the offer says that plainly.

Link 03Permits, escorts, surveys

Permits, escorts and surveys

Where the limits come from

Federal rules set the width standard on the National Network at 102 inches and the Interstate weight limits at 80,000 pounds gross with axle limits and the bridge formula . There is no federal height limit; each state sets its own . Anything over a limit needs a permit from every state on the route, and each state sets its own rules for when escorts, signs, flags and lights are required, which hours and days you can travel, and which routes are allowed.

Because those rules differ by state and change, we check each state's official permit office for the load in front of us rather than relying on a general chart. You can check state weight limits yourself with the truck weight limit checker.

Escorts and surveys

Larger loads need one or more escort vehicles, sometimes a height pole, and in some cases police escorts in certain areas. Very tall or very heavy loads may need a route survey before permits are issued, to check bridges, wires and turns. Each of those is a cost and a scheduling dependency. We confirm who books each one, how much it costs and whether it's on the rate con.

Travel time

Many permits restrict travel to daylight hours and block weekends or holidays. A 900-mile oversize trip can take far longer than the same miles on a legal load. We plan the trip with those windows, so the delivery date the broker agrees to is one you can legally meet.

When permits run late

Permits sometimes take longer than planned, a state asks for a route change, or an escort cancels the night before. Every day the truck waits is a day it isn't earning. That's why layover and detention terms matter more on heavy haul than almost anywhere else. We ask for layover pay if the load isn't ready or permits aren't issued on the agreed date, and TONU if the move is cancelled after you've committed the truck.

Dimensions you can trust

Every permit is only as good as the dimensions it was issued for. A machine quoted at 11 feet wide that arrives at 11 feet 8 inches with a bucket attached is a different load, with different permits. We ask for dimensions and weight in writing, with attachments listed, and remind you to measure at pickup. If it doesn't match, stop and call before you leave the yard.

Link 04What brokers ask in setup

What heavy haul brokers ask for in setup

Heavy haul brokers move expensive, hard-to-replace freight: construction and mining equipment, transformers, industrial machinery. They set up carriers carefully and stay loyal to the ones who deliver without incident. Expect detailed questions about your trailer, your securement gear, your coverage and your experience with similar loads.

Our guide to heavy haul brokers explains how they work and how to vet them. We keep your specs, photos and coverage details ready, so a broker covering a time-sensitive machine move can approve you the same day.

First loads with a new heavy haul broker are usually smaller or simpler moves, a way for the broker to see how you communicate, secure and deliver. Treat them like an interview. Clean photos at pickup and delivery, updates before anyone asks and paperwork back the same day are what turn a trial load into the next machine move, and the one after that.

Trailer type, deck heights, deck length and axle configuration
Legal and permitted capacity of the tractor and trailer
Chains, binders and securement gear rated for heavy pieces
Cargo coverage high enough for machinery values
Experience with similar equipment or commodities
Photos of the trailer and recent loads
Who orders permits: you, a permit service or the broker

Loading and securement on very heavy pieces

Heavy machinery is often driven on, winched or lifted by crane, and the securement has to hold the piece through hard braking and turns. Before you confirm, we ask how the piece loads, its weight and center of gravity if known, tie-down points, and whether the shipper provides a loading crew. Those answers decide whether the load fits your trailer, your gear and your day, and they go straight into the offer.

Link 05Fee and questions

What oversize load dispatch costs

7% of the rate con gross while your MC is under 6 months, 5% after, and 4% per truck for fleets of two or more. No heavy haul premium. Billed weekly on delivered loads, with no setup fee and no minimums. See what we charge and how we work.

Ready? Apply for heavy haul dispatch with your trailer specs, permitted capacity and the regions you run.

In the first week we record your trailer specs and permit setup, list the heavy haul brokers active in your regions and start pricing moves line by line. Heavy haul is slower to book than legal freight, so we keep a few moves in progress at once.

Questions carriers ask

How much does oversize load dispatch cost?

The same as every truck type: 7% of the rate con gross while your MC is under 6 months, 5% after, and 4% per truck for fleets of two or more. Lumper reimbursements are excluded. No heavy haul premium, no setup fee and no minimum, billed weekly on delivered loads, with 30 days notice to cancel.

Do you handle oversize permits?

Permits are issued to the carrier by each state on the route. We confirm the exact dimensions and weight with the broker, find out whether the broker or a permit service orders them, check the permitted route against the trip plan and make sure the permit cost is written on the rate con. If you order permits yourself, we track them so the load doesn't sit waiting.

Who pays for escorts?

It depends on the deal, and that's exactly why it has to be written down. Some brokers arrange and pay escorts directly; others expect the carrier to hire them and reimburse the cost on the rate con. If escorts aren't mentioned, assume they're coming out of your pocket. We get the escort arrangement and amount in writing before you confirm.

Do you dispatch lowboys and RGNs?

Yes. We dispatch lowboys, removable gooseneck trailers, double drops, stretch trailers and step decks hauling oversize freight, under your own authority. Each trailer has its own deck heights, length and axle setup, which decide what it can legally carry and where. We record your trailer's specs once and use them on every load we consider.

Is heavy haul dispatch different from flatbed?

Yes, in pace and paperwork. Heavy haul loads are fewer, larger and slower to set up: permits, escorts, route surveys, travel-time restrictions and careful securement for very heavy pieces. The rate con has more lines and more ways to go wrong. A flatbed load can be booked in minutes; a heavy haul load can take days to price correctly.

Can I review every rate con first?

Yes. You see every term in the offer before you confirm, and the broker sends the rate con straight to you, made out to your company. You sign it yourself. If permits, escorts or surveys aren't written the way we agreed, don't sign: tell us and we'll get it corrected with the broker first.

Every permit, escort and survey priced before you say yes

We work the heavy haul brokers and write every line into the rate con. You confirm each load.

Quote my heavy haul

We work for this link

Carrier

Hauls the load under its own MC and signs the rate confirmation.

Paid by the broker (or through a factor) at the carrier rate.