Factoring companies for new trucking companies: your first 60 days on a new MC
Your authority just went active. You know how to drive the truck; billing a broker and waiting 30 days to be paid is new. Factoring companies for new trucking companies can pay you the day after delivery and check brokers for you, but only if the first invoice is right. Here's how to set it up and get that first one funded.
New MC? Tell us your expected volume.
We refer carriers to a factoring partner and may be paid for referrals. Disclosure
Your factor screens brokers before you haul for them
A new carrier gets calls from brokers it has never heard of, and a few of them won't pay. A factor's business depends on knowing which. Before you book, you can look a broker up in your factor's app or call them, and they'll tell you whether they'll buy that broker's invoices and, often, how fast it usually pays.
Use that answer even on loads you don't plan to factor. If the people whose job is collecting from brokers won't buy the invoice, you probably shouldn't haul the load at that rate.
Approved
The factor will buy the invoice. Book if the rate works.
Approved, slow payer
Fine with factoring; a problem if you planned to wait for payment yourself.
Limited
The factor will buy invoices only up to a set amount from this broker.
Not approved
The factor won't buy. Treat it as a red flag, not a technicality.
Typical answers, worded differently by each factor.
The first factored invoice, on a scorecard
The first invoice always takes the longest, because the factor is setting up your account and sending notices to your brokers at the same time. You can still make it fast. Tick off each item as you have it; anything left unticked shows what it would hold up.
What holds up this invoice
Rate con shows your exact legal name and MC
Name or MC mismatch with your factoring account: held until the broker issues a corrected rate con.
Every BOL page readable, nothing cut off
Blurry or cropped pages get rejected: rescan and resubmit, often losing a day.
Any shortage or damage notes explained
Exceptions on the BOL can trigger a short pay or a claim: factor may advance less or hold it.
Invoice load number and amount match the rate con
Mismatched numbers get kicked back for correction.
Lumper or detention receipts attached
Extra charges not billed now are hard to collect later.
Broker has your factor's notice of assignment
Broker may pay you, or hold payment, instead of paying the factor: sorting that out takes days.
Set up before you haul. Apply to the factor the week your authority goes active, not the day your first load delivers. Account setup, the agreement and the lien filing take a day or two, and doing them while you wait for your first load means the advance lands the morning after delivery.
Keep a copy of everything. Save each rate con, BOL and invoice in one folder on your phone, named by load number. When a broker short-pays in two months, the proof is the folder, not your memory.
Three mistakes that hold up a new carrier's first invoice
The missing signature
You drop the trailer at night, nobody signs, and you leave. Now there's no proof of delivery. Before you pull away, get the BOL signed and dated, or get the receiver's written confirmation by email the same day.
The wrong remit-to
If the broker's setup still lists your own bank or address for payment, the money may come to you instead of the factor. Then you owe it to the factor, and the factor holds your next advance until it's sorted. Check that every new broker has the notice of assignment.
The unreadable BOL
A dark cab, a crumpled page, a photo with a thumb in it. Scan in daylight or under a light, flat on a surface, every page, and look at the scan before you send it. The factor can't verify what it can't read.
When we dispatch a new authority, we send the factor's notice with your carrier packet to every broker before the first load, and remind you at delivery which documents to photograph. See new authority dispatch.
Documents and checks when you apply
Have these ready and the application moves in a day or two. Each factor's list differs a little; these are the usual ones.
- Your MC number and the authority letter showing it's active
- A W-9 with your business name and tax ID
- Your certificate of insurance
- The owner's driver's license
- Bank details for deposits
- LLC or corporation papers, if you have them
What they check: that your authority is active and your insurance is on file with FMCSA, that no other lender already has a lien on your receivables, whether there are tax liens against the business, and sometimes the owner's credit.
Source: 49 CFR 387.9; FMCSA insurance filing requirements · checked Oct 2026
The lien: after you sign, the factor files a UCC-1 on your receivables. If you used a lender for startup money who filed one first, the factor will need that lender to agree before it can buy your invoices. Sort that out early.
Source: UCC 9-109(a)(3) · checked Oct 2026
Read these five lines before you sign as a new carrier
| Term | What a new carrier wants | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Length | Month-to-month or a short first term | A year or more that renews by itself |
| Minimums | None, or low enough for your slowest month | Fees when volume falls short |
| Termination | Written notice, a clear date, no fee | Exit fees, narrow notice windows |
| Factor every invoice? | Your choice per load | Full-turnover clauses on all receivables |
| Rate review | A set date to revisit the rate | Rates that can rise without notice |
Typical fees in 2026 run 1.5% to 4% of the invoice, most often 2% to 3%, with 80-95% advanced. A new authority usually starts in the upper half and earns its way down. For the rest of the fast pay picture, start at the fast pay overview.
Source: AtoB, Freight Factoring guide (updated May 8, 2026) · checked Oct 2026
New MC factoring questions
Set up factoring before the first load
We refer carriers to a factoring partner and may be paid for referrals. Disclosure
We refer carriers to RTS Financial and may be paid for referrals. Not financial or legal advice. Disclosure
The first loads are the hard part.
Dispatch at 7% of gross while your MC is under 6 months, then 5%. You confirm or pass every load.
Do factoring companies check my credit?
Some do, but it matters less than you'd think. A factor is buying your customers' invoices, so it mostly checks your brokers' payment records. It will also check your authority, look for existing liens or unpaid tax liens on your business, and may pull your personal credit. Ask whether that's a soft or hard pull before you apply.
What documents do I need to start factoring?
Usually your operating authority letter or MC number, a W-9, your certificate of insurance, a driver's license for the owner, bank details for deposits, and your business formation papers if you're an LLC or corporation. Then the signed factoring agreement. For each load: the rate con, the signed BOL and your invoice.
Can a new MC get factoring?
Yes. Factoring is one of the few kinds of financing open to a carrier with no history, because the factor relies on your brokers' credit more than yours. Expect a rate in the upper half of the typical range at first and possibly a lower advance until you have a few months of clean invoices.
Should a new carrier sign a long factoring contract?
Usually not. In your first months you don't know your volume, your brokers or what you really need. A short term, or month-to-month, keeps your options open when your authority has some history and better offers come. If a long term is the only way to get a good rate, check the exit fee and automatic renewal.
Do factors help with broker credit checks?
Yes, and for a new carrier that's one of the most useful parts. Most factors let you look up a broker in their app before you book and tell you whether they'll buy that broker's invoices. A broker your factor won't approve is a warning worth listening to, whether or not you factor the load.