Truck Dispatch Documents: Paperwork Checklist

The short version: Every load needs the same chain: a signed rate confirmation before the truck moves, a bill of lading from the shipper at pickup, a signed proof of delivery at drop-off, and any accessorial receipts (lumper, detention, layover) collected at the time they happen. The invoice packet sent to the broker or factoring company is just those documents, complete and legible. Missing one is worth days of payment delay.

1. Before the load: the carrier packet

MC authority letter and operating authority – the broker checks this before offering the load.
Certificate of insurance (COI) showing cargo and liability coverage, current dates, with the broker listed as certificate holder when required.
W-9 – brokers will not set up payment without it.
Signed broker-carrier agreement plus your factoring company's Notice of Assignment if you factor, so the broker pays the right party.
Banking or factoring details for payment setup, sent once and kept on file.

2. At booking: the rate confirmation

The rate confirmation (rate con) is the contract for the load: pickup and delivery addresses, appointment times, commodity and weight, equipment required, the agreed rate, and any accessorial terms – detention pay and its free-time window, layover, TONU (truck order not used), and lumper reimbursement. Read it against what was agreed on the call before signing; the rate con, not the phone call, is what gets paid. If detention or layover terms are missing, get them added in writing before the truck rolls.

3. At pickup: the bill of lading

The shipper issues the bill of lading (BOL), and the driver's copy is the load's birth certificate. Check it before leaving: piece count and weight against the rate con, seal number if sealed, and any damage or shortage noted on the BOL itself at the dock – a clean signature on a short load is a claim the carrier usually loses. Photograph the BOL at pickup; paper has a way of disappearing by delivery day.

4. In transit and at delivery: POD and accessorials

Proof of delivery (POD): the BOL signed by the receiver with name, date, and time. An unsigned or illegible POD is the number one cause of invoice queries.
Lumper receipts: paid unloading fees are reimbursable only with the receipt – no receipt, no reimbursement.
Detention evidence: in and out times recorded on the BOL or via the ELD, matching the rate con's terms. Detention claims without timestamps are opinions.
Scale tickets when the load requires weighing, and reweigh tickets if a dispute arises.

5. The invoice packet

What goes to the broker or factoring company: the signed rate con, the BOL, the signed POD, accessorial receipts, and the invoice with the load number on every page. Send it the same day as delivery, as one clean packet, and keep a copy organized by load. Factoring companies reject packets for missing pages and unreadable scans – a flat, legible scan of each document, named consistently, is worth more than any single negotiation on rate.

6. How a dispatcher keeps this straight

Document discipline is a system, not a memory test: a per-load checklist the dispatcher works through at booking, pickup, and delivery; photos captured at the dock, not at the end of the week; and a weekly sweep for loads delivered but not invoiced. This is unglamorous work, and it is exactly where a professional dispatch service earns its percentage – the loads are only half the job; getting paid in full and on time is the other half.

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Truck Dispatch Documents: The Paperwork Checklist for Every Load