Flatbed Dispatch Service
JackRick Logistics dispatches flatbed carriers at a flat 10% per load — Friday invoicing, no retainer, no minimum, no long-term contract. Securement-aware booking, oversize permits handled. Quote: (757) 744-2484.
Flatbed pays for skill. Tarping a lumber load in the rain, chaining down a steel coil, permitting an oversize machine — this is freight that cannot be booked by someone who has never secured a load. Flatbed dispatch has to understand securement, dimensions, and the time it really takes to load and unload open-deck freight.
JackRick Logistics dispatches flatbed owner-operators and small fleets running standard flatbeds. We book lumber, steel, building materials, machinery, and permitted oversize loads — negotiating rates that reflect the real work involved, for a flat 10% per load invoiced every Friday.
No retainer, no monthly minimum, no long-term contract. Thirty days' written notice ends the arrangement. Based in Hampton Roads, Virginia, serving flatbed carriers nationwide.
What flatbed dispatch actually involves
Open-deck freight is exposed freight: weather, road grime, and shifting are constant concerns, and every load has to be secured to FMCSA standards (Part 393) with the right mix of straps, chains, binders, edge protectors, and tarps. A flatbed dispatcher needs to know the difference between a load that needs a lumber tarp and one that needs a steel tarp — and to price the tarping labor into the rate.
We verify dimensions, weight, and securement requirements before your truck commits, confirm whether the shipper loads or you do, and make sure tarping pay, stop pay, and detention terms are in the rate confirmation. Flatbed loads routinely take two to four hours to secure and tarp; the rate has to cover that labor or it is not a good load.
The freight we book for flatbed carriers
Our bread and butter is legal-dimension flatbed freight: dimensional lumber, steel coils and beams, roofing materials, palletized building products, agricultural equipment, and crated machinery. We also book permitted oversize and overweight loads for carriers set up for them — verifying permit requirements, escort needs, and travel-time restrictions by state before booking.
Construction-driven freight follows the building season, and we plan around it: spring and summer bring strong flatbed demand in most regions, while winter shifts volume toward southern lanes and indoor-staged materials. A flatbed dispatcher who ignores seasonality is leaving money on the table.
| Freight type | Securement notes | Rate factors |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensional lumber | Lumber tarps, belly straps | Tarp pay, multi-drop potential |
| Steel coils/beams | Coil racks, chains, edge protection | Weight, specialized securement premium |
| Building materials | Straps and tarps vary by product | Construction seasonality |
| Machinery/equipment | Chains, binders, sometimes ramps | Oversize permits, escort costs |
Oversize, permits, and the details that sink loads
Open-deck freight has more ways to go wrong than any other segment. These are the details we get right before your truck commits.
What we need from a flatbed carrier
Good flatbed dispatch starts with knowing exactly what your trailer can do, because every load we book has to match your securement setup. Before we hunt your first load, we document your equipment: trailer length and type, how many tarps you carry and what kind (lumber tarps, steel tarps, or both), your strap and chain inventory, binders, coil racks, edge protectors, dunnage, and whether you run with ramps. A carrier with full tarping and coil-rack capability can take nearly any legal flatbed load; a carrier without tarps is limited to no-tarp freight, and we plan accordingly rather than discovering the gap at a shipper.
Driver experience matters more in flatbed than in any other segment, and we ask about it directly. Securing a steel coil is not a learn-on-the-job task — it requires coil racks used correctly, proper chain angles, and respect for what several tons of steel can do in a hard brake. If your driver is newer to open deck, we start with straightforward palletized and crated freight and build toward the complex securement loads as skill grows. There is no shame in that progression; there is real danger in skipping it.
We also need honesty about what you will and will not haul. Some flatbed drivers love permitted oversize work; others want nothing to do with escorts and curfews. Some will tarp in any weather; others draw the line at certain commodities. Tell us your boundaries once and we will respect them on every load — a dispatcher who books freight you hate is a dispatcher you will fire, and we would rather keep you.
Finally, flatbed rewards carriers who communicate. Load and unload times on open deck are unpredictable — a crane breaks down, a forklift driver disappears, a shipper's dimensions were optimistic. When you tell us what is happening at the shipper in real time, we can adjust the rest of the week around it. Silence turns a two-hour delay into a missed next load; a quick call turns it into a rebooked plan.
Steel, lumber, and machinery: booking flatbed freight by commodity
Flatbed dispatch is not one market — it is several, and each commodity has its own rhythm, its own shippers, and its own way of going wrong. Steel moves in heavy, dense loads where weight distribution and axle limits decide whether the load is legal before it ever leaves the dock; a dispatcher who understands how steel coils and plate are actually loaded can spot a problem on the rate confirmation instead of at the scale house. Lumber and building materials move in high-volume, price-sensitive lanes where tarp condition and on-time delivery matter more than anything, because a late lumber delivery holds up an entire job site. Machinery and equipment freight pays for care: the shipper is trusting you with a six-figure asset, and the dispatch conversation includes loading assistance, cribbing, and exactly who is responsible if the machine shifts.
A good flatbed dispatcher learns the vocabulary of each commodity so the driver does not have to translate at the dock. That means knowing the difference between a load that needs lumber tarps and one that needs steel tarps, understanding when a shipper's 'ready to load' actually means the crane operator arrives in two hours, and recognizing which facilities are driver-friendly and which ones will burn half your day. Over time, this commodity knowledge becomes a lane strategy of its own: the dispatcher steers the truck toward the freight its equipment and the driver's experience handle best, instead of booking whatever pays the most per mile on paper and costs the most in headaches.
This is also where JackRick's dispatch approach earns its keep. We ask flatbed carriers what commodities they prefer and what they want to avoid, then we build their week around that preference instead of forcing square-peg loads onto round-hole equipment. A driver who hates tarping should not be running lumber in the rain; a driver with machinery experience should be first in line for the equipment moves. That matching is invisible when it works — the driver just notices that the loads fit, the docks run smoother, and the week has fewer surprises. Call (757) 744-2484 and tell us what kind of flatbed freight you want to run, and we will build around it.
Honest terms: what it costs and how to start
Our dispatch fee is a flat 10% per load — invoiced every Friday, with no retainer, no monthly minimum, and no long-term contract. If the arrangement is not working for you, 30 days' written notice ends it. That structure exists for a reason: a dispatcher who earns only when your truck earns has to keep booking freight you actually want to run.
Getting started is a conversation, not a signup form. We review your flatbed, your authority and insurance, the lanes and home time you need, and what your truck costs to run. If the math works and the fit is right, we start hunting loads. Call (757) 744-2484 or email [email protected] to get a quote.
Get a quote for flatbed dispatch
Every truck is different — equipment, authority age, home base, and the lanes that keep your driver happy all change which loads are worth booking. That is why we quote in conversation instead of publishing a price list. Tell us about your operation and we will give you a straight answer on whether dispatch makes sense for you, and what it would look like week to week.
To talk through your lanes and get a quote, call (757) 744-2484, email [email protected], or reach out through the contact page at /contact/. Tell us your equipment, home base, and the lanes you like — we will tell you honestly whether we are a fit.
Key takeaways
- Flatbed dispatch requires real securement knowledge — tarps, chains, coils, and FMCSA Part 393 all affect the rate.
- We book lumber, steel, building materials, machinery, and permitted oversize loads, with dimensions verified in writing before booking.
- Oversize loads get state-by-state permit, escort, and curfew checks, with costs covered in the rate — not absorbed by you.
- Tarping, stop, and detention pay are negotiated into every rate confirmation up front.
- Flat 10% per load, Friday invoicing, no retainer, no minimum, no long-term contract; 30 days' written notice to end.
- Based in Hampton Roads, Virginia — serving flatbed carriers nationwide since 2022.
Questions carriers ask
What does JackRick dispatch service cost?
A flat 10% per load, invoiced every Friday. There is no retainer, no monthly minimum, and no long-term contract — if you want out, 30 days' written notice ends the arrangement. We earn only when your truck earns.
How do I start dispatch service with JackRick?
Call (757) 744-2484 or email [email protected] for a quote. We will talk through your equipment, authority, insurance, lanes, and home-time needs, then tell you honestly whether we are a fit before anything is signed.
What is included in the dispatch fee?
Load sourcing with verified dimensions and securement requirements, rate negotiation including tarp/stop/detention pay, permit and escort verification on oversize loads, rate confirmations and paperwork, and detention pursuit. You secure the load; we handle everything else.
Do you book oversize and permitted flatbed loads?
Yes, for carriers equipped and willing to run them. We verify dimensions in writing, check state permit and escort requirements on the route, and make sure permit and escort costs are covered in the rate before your truck commits.
How do you handle tarping pay?
We negotiate tarping pay as part of the rate on every tarped load and get it into the rate confirmation. If a broker will not pay for the tarping labor, we will tell you so you can decide whether the load is worth it.
Is flatbed dispatch worth 10%?
Flatbed loads take longer to book correctly — dimensions, securement, permits — and pay more than dry van when negotiated well. The 10% flat only makes sense if the dispatcher earns it on every load, which is exactly the standard we hold ourselves to.