When a driver is stuck at a delivery destination waiting hours to unload, the receiver or shipper should cover the driver’s detention pay. What often happens is that fleets compensate their drivers for these delivery delays, then try to recoup that money from the shipper, receiver, or freight broker.
Reimbursement may take weeks or even months. Some freight partners might not pay at all, especially if the freight contract doesn’t mention detention pay. Fleets might have no choice but to absorb the costs of detention pay.
Fleets often have thin profit margins. Paying one driver for two hours of detention might not be a big loss, but larger fleets with multiple drivers could lose thousands of dollars per month to unreimbursed detention pay. Plus, recurring detention time could cause your drivers to look elsewhere for work.
To ensure profitability and minimize driver turnover, fleets need to solve the problem of driver detention.
Causes of Driver Detention
Here’s a breakdown of what causes driver detention:
Receiver Is Unprepared for Delivery
- No open dock doors available
- Receiver is understaffed
- No open inventory space at the time of delivery
- Forklifts or other equipment isn’t available or ready
Poor Scheduling or Overbooking Errors
- Receiver double-booked deliveries
- Tight delivery windows create growing backlogs
- Shipper confirmed a delivery time with the carrier but didn’t confirm with the receiver
- Other miscommunication about timing between the broker, shipper, and receiver
Excessive Paperwork or Manual Processes
- Long receiver check-in/check-out procedures
- Errors in bills of lading (BOL) or load details
- Waiting for warehouse supervisors to approve documents
Load Discrepancies or Rejected Freight
- Product doesn’t match what was expected
- Pallets are damaged or incorrectly labeled
- Receiver rejects the freight and requires inspection or repackaging
You’ll notice that none of the points above are due to driver error. Yet drivers feel the direct impact of those issues.
Why Driver Detention is Bad for Fleets
Fleets may see driver detention pay as a cashflow problem, but the larger cost is potential driver turnover. Drivers might perceive detention time as a lack of respect, especially if their employer doesn’t work to prevent it.
Detention time creates stress for drivers. They can’t leave to grab a meal, and long delays could cause them to miss their next pickup, get a late start finding overnight accommodations, or even disrupt their personal plans back at home.
A single bad experience with detention time might be forgivable, but when detention time is a frequent problem, the best drivers might decide to find another job.
How to Address the Detention Problem
To prevent detention time — or at least make sure you’re reimbursed for it quickly — you need a solid contract.
All contracts should define parameters for detention time, like when you begin charging for detention time (the industry standard is two hours past the delivery time). Discourage long delays by defining a higher rate for each subsequent hour, and explain how you calculate time. For example, your contract could mention that your driver’s ELD is the only source of truth for calculating detention time, which leaves no room for shipping partners to offer their own calculations.
With airtight contracts, you’re one step closer to solving the detention problem. But you also need better technology, and that’s when a transportation management system (TMS) can help.
With a TMS, you can:
Confirm receiver capabilities: Your contract includes every detail about each load, including the equipment the receiver will need to offload it.
Digitize delivery documents: A TMS eliminates the need for paper records, so drivers will never experience delivery delays because of sloppy handwriting or unclear details. You can generate all paperwork digitally, including the bill of lading, so drivers can present clear documentation at delivery and collect digital signatures instantly.
Automate ETA tracking and communication: TMS GPS-tracking integration shows dispatchers where trucks are in real time. The TMS can ping receivers when drivers are getting close and confirm that teams are ready for the delivery.
Identify problem partners: A TMS can show you when receivers are “repeat offenders — if they repeatedly cause driver detention, you can decide whether to end that partnership or charge a delivery premium that helps you increase compensation for delayed drivers.
Invoice immediately: If a driver is detained, a TMS can fire off an invoice for detention pay reimbursement as soon as the driver completes the delivery.
Boost Profitability With PCS TMS for Carriers
PCS TMS helps carriers improve profit margins, retain drivers, and grow their fleets — with less effort. If you’re ready to overhaul your operations and shred those messy spreadsheets, it’s time to try PCS.
Contact us today to get your personalized demo!
