Reefer dispatch that counts the unit fuel before it counts the rate
A reefer load that pays 30 cents more a mile can still lose money once the unit runs all night, the lumper wants cash and the receiver holds you four hours. Our reefer dispatchers price every load with those costs in it, then bring it to you to confirm or pass. The broker sends its rate con to you, not to us.
License line
Tractor and reefer trailer: Class A
No endorsement for general reefer freight. Placarded hazmat needs H. Your state DMV can add requirements.
Source: 49 CFR 383.91 · checked Oct 2026
Source: 49 CFR 383.93, 383.153 · checked Oct 2026
Refrigerated truck dispatch starts with a reefer week calculator
Reefer has two engines burning diesel: the truck and the unit. The unit runs on hours, not miles, and it keeps running at the shipper, at the receiver and through the night on a continuous setting. Frozen loads usually run it harder than produce. Lumpers are a regular line item at grocery warehouses, and whether you get them back depends on what the rate con says.
Put in your own week. Every default is an EXAMPLE, including the unit burn rate, which varies by unit, setpoint and outside temperature. Use your fuel receipts or your unit's hour meter for real numbers. To estimate one trip's fuel, try the trip fuel cost calculator.
- Gross2,300 loaded mi at $3.35
- $7,705
- Dispatch fee 5%
- −$385
- Truck fuel
- −$2,582
- Reefer unit fuel
- −$313
- Lumpers
- $0 (reimbursed)
- Left before fixed costs
- $4,425
Fixed costs (truck and trailer notes, insurance, reefer maintenance) still come out of this.
Five reefer costs dry van carriers forget
- Unit fuel, burned by the hour, including while you wait at docks.
- Unit maintenance and service intervals on top of the truck's.
- Trailer washouts, which some food shippers require before loading.
- Reefer breakdown coverage on your cargo policy, which many brokers ask for.
- Lumpers and detention that aren't on the rate con, and so never come back.
What a reefer dispatcher should ask before booking
Setpoint and whether it's continuous or cycle, pre-cool required or not, pulp temperature checks, load and unload times, lumper terms, whether a temperature download will be requested at delivery, and how detention is paid. If a dispatcher books reefer freight without asking those, they're booking a rate, not a load.
Reefer dispatcher freight: produce, frozen and food grade
Produce
Seasonal and lane-driven. Strong out of growing regions in season, thin out of season. Pulp temps, pre-cooling and fast pickups matter.
Frozen and protein
Steady volume with tight temperature specs. Harder on the unit and usually stricter on paperwork and on-time delivery.
Dairy, beverage and grocery
Distribution center freight with appointments and lumpers. Heavy loads, so weight and axle spread get checked before we book.
Food grade dry in a reefer
Temperature-protected or clean-trailer loads that pay to keep a reefer moving when produce season is slow.
Pharma and sensitive goods
Only when your trailer, monitoring and insurance meet the shipper's requirements. We don't book it until you're qualified.
Backhauls into produce country
Reefer weeks often hinge on getting back to a strong outbound market, so the reload is planned before the first load books.
Reefer lanes follow the seasons
Produce moves with harvests: winter vegetables out of Arizona and South Texas, spring crops out of Florida and Georgia, summer lettuce out of California's Central Coast, fall apples out of the Pacific Northwest. Rates in those markets climb when the crop is in and fall away when it's done. A reefer dispatcher who knows the calendar positions your truck ahead of the season instead of chasing it, and keeps you on frozen and grocery freight between peaks.
If a load gets rejected
It happens: a pulp temperature out of range, a damaged pallet, a receiver who finds something wrong. Your best defense is paperwork: the setpoint on the BOL, pulp temps at pickup, photos, and a unit download. We help you document every step and work with the broker on next steps, whether that's a reconsignment, a salvage, or a claim through your cargo insurer.
Food loads come with food rules
Carriers hauling human or animal food must follow FDA's sanitary transportation rule: written procedures, trained personnel, clean equipment and pre-cooling and temperature records when the shipper requires temperature control. Brokers and shippers check for it, and a missing temperature record can turn into a rejected load and a claim.
Source: FDA FSMA Sanitary Transportation rule, 21 CFR 1.900-1.934 · checked Oct 2026
Reefer context, June 2026
- Spot, all-in
- $3.39
- Minus fuel
- $2.70
- Contract
- $3.22
Source: DAT Freight & Analytics, national averages for June 2026 (released July 9, 2026) · checked Oct 2026
Reefer dispatch fee: same as every truck
Reefer is more work to dispatch than dry van, and some services charge more for it. We don't. 7% while your MC is under 6 months, 5% after, 4% for 2 or more trucks (limited time). No setup fee, no contract, and the fee is only on loads you haul. Pricing and terms.
Company reefer drivers get their loads from their carrier; we work for owner-operators and fleets with their own MC. If you drive a company reefer, your carrier dispatches you. Running a mixed fleet of reefers and dry vans? One desk plans both, and each truck pays the same fleet rate.
How much does reefer dispatch cost?
5% of each load's gross for one truck with 6 months or more of authority, 7% while your MC is under 6 months, and 4% for 2 or more trucks (limited-time rate). Reefer pays the same percentage as dry van or flatbed. No setup fee, no minimums, month-to-month, and nothing in weeks you don't haul.
Do reefer loads pay more than dry van?
Usually per mile, yes. DAT's national averages for June 2026 put reefer spot at $3.39 a mile including fuel against $3.00 for dry van. But reefer costs more to run: unit fuel, unit maintenance, a pricier trailer and insurance with reefer breakdown coverage. The calculator above shows whether the premium covers your costs.
Can a new MC get reefer loads?
Yes, though it takes more care. Food shippers and brokers often want more history, higher cargo limits and reefer breakdown coverage before they'll tender temperature-controlled freight. We start with brokers that load new reefer carriers and make sure your insurance certificate lists what they ask for.
Who pays lumper fees?
Usually the broker or shipper reimburses lumpers, but only when it's agreed before you accept and written on the rate confirmation. Get a receipt every time. Grocery warehouses use lumpers constantly, so we confirm lumper terms, payment method and any codes before a reefer load ever reaches you.
How do you handle detention?
We log your arrival and departure times, alert the broker when free time is about to run out, and file the detention claim with your timestamps. Free time and the hourly rate vary by broker and must be on the rate con; two hours of free time is common but not a rule. Reefer detention also burns unit fuel, so we push for it.
Keep your reefer loaded with loads that pay after the unit fuel
Apply in about 2 minutes. Tell us your unit, trailer and lanes. Every load comes to you first, with lumper and detention terms already checked.
- Gross booked
- $6,700
- Dispatch fee 5%
- −$335
- You keep (before costs)
- $6,365
Fee is charged only on loads you haul. No haul, no fee.