Wow, has this summer started out to be one for the books in my opinion! Not just for my trucks, but for the entire trucking industry in general! With unprecedented shortages in capacity, record rates in all three common sectors (van, reefer and flatbed) and great MPG coming out of all the new tech advances in the new trucks, there is definitely a feast to be had right now if you know what you are doing in the spot market. For those of us hiking rates to brokers and shippers alike, be wary of making sure you are not labeled as someone who is being unfair and unreasonable. It may come back to bite you sooner than you think!
Although this summer’s uptick has followed typical cyclical seasonal trends, the amplification from the ELD mandate and unreformed HOS has taken it to a whole new level. Rates are literally being offered that one might have been laughed out of town for just four to six short months ago. As high as prices are now, which I believe have been a long time overdue, I truly don’t mean to rain on anyone’s parade when I caution to weigh your rates against your performance and loyalty. Gouging is a term that comes to mind when the rates favor the carriers in such a fashion as they do right now, since a lot of carriers take advantage of the situation to truly price themselves into another category. Believe me when I say that brokers and shippers not only remember these gouging carriers, but also keep track of them on a special list of carriers that will remembered come the end of the summer and holiday freight seasons!
Business is business and we all have to put food on the table! Operating at a level that provides comfort and a well-deserved wage is all I have ever hoped for throughout my decade and a half of doing this. I am not going to lie and say that I kept my rates the same as last summer though. My rates now reflect a crunched market as well, but I am always careful that they are fair. Weighing market conditions, certain warehouse locations and the hassle of different commodities in my rate decisions keeps me grounded and makes sure I do not overprice myself out of existence once the slow times come back, which they will. Keep yourself somewhat grounded in these times of inflated rates, maintain your relationships by doing so and you may find your rates will not be so “heavy” you “sink” when the hot seasonal trends dissipate.