FTL Trucking: Full Truckload Shipping

What FTL trucking is

FTL trucking, or full truckload shipping, gives your freight a trailer to itself. It is loaded once at pickup, sealed, and driven directly to the receiver with no carrier terminals, no sorting and no transfers between trucks. Fewer touches mean less damage risk and a more predictable delivery than shared-trailer options.

You pay for the whole trailer whether the freight fills it or not, so full truckload freight makes sense when the shipment uses most of the space or most of the legal weight, or when the cargo is too fragile or valuable to rehandle.

Most of our FTL loads start at our Long Beach facility, where ocean containers are unloaded and their contents reloaded into 53' dry vans through transloading or cross-docking, or released from warehousing on a schedule.

53' dry van truckload capacity at a glance

A 53' dry van is the standard trailer for domestic truckload transportation. Its limits come from two directions: floor space and legal weight.

Will your load weigh out or cube out first?

Every full truckload hits one of two limits first: it weighs out (reaches legal weight with floor space left) or cubes out (fills the floor and height before reaching legal weight). Knowing which one applies tells you how many pallets to plan and whether a shipment needs a second truck.

Example (heavy freight): 26 pallets of floor tile at 1,800 lbs each would total 46,800 lbs, more than a typical dry van can legally carry. At that pallet weight the practical load is about 23 to 24 pallets, and the extra pallets need another truck or an LTL shipment.

Example (light freight): 26 pallets of packaged housewares at 500 lbs each total only 13,000 lbs. The trailer cubes out with most of its weight capacity unused. If the pallets are stackable, double-stacking can fit up to 52 pallets on one truck and halve the cost per pallet.

Quick rule: divide the freight weight you can legally load (use about 43,000 lbs as a planning figure) by 26. If your average pallet weighs more than roughly 1,650 lbs, plan by weight; if it weighs less, plan by floor space and stackability.

How heavy truckloads are loaded legally

A legal gross weight does not guarantee legal axle weights. Under 23 CFR 658.17, a tandem axle group may carry no more than 34,000 lbs, so 44,000 lbs of freight piled toward the nose of the trailer can overload the tractor drive axles even when the total is under 80,000 lbs.

We load heavy freight evenly from front to back, keep the heaviest pallets low and centered, and fill voids or brace the load so it cannot shift. Drivers can slide the trailer tandems to rebalance, but that only works within a range, so the load plan has to be right before the doors close.

Containers that arrive heavy are a common source of this problem. A 20' container is often packed close to its weight limit with dense goods, and its contents may weigh out a 53' trailer while using less than half the floor. We pull heavier containers from the port on triaxle chassis and plan outbound loads from the actual scale weight, not the booking weight.

How a full truckload shipment works

This is the sequence for a typical FTL trucking move out of our Long Beach facility.

1. 01
   Quote and tender

   You send pickup readiness, destination, commodity, pallet count, weight and appointment requirements. We confirm equipment, rate and accessorial terms in writing before booking.

2. 02
   Book the receiver appointment

   Many distribution centers require an appointment booked ahead with PO numbers. We book or confirm it and plan the pickup backward from that time.

3. 03
   Load the trailer

   Freight is loaded either live, with the driver waiting, or into a drop trailer staged at the dock and picked up later. We follow the load plan for weight distribution and PO grouping.

4. 04
   Secure, seal and document

   The load is braced or strapped, the doors are sealed, and the seal number goes on the bill of lading with piece count, weight and references.

5. 05
   Linehaul with status updates

   The driver runs within hours-of-service limits. We send shipment status updates and flag delays that could miss the appointment.

6. 06
   Delivery and proof of delivery

   The receiver verifies the seal, counts and inspects the freight, and signs the delivery receipt. Shortages or damage should be written on that receipt before signing.

Live load, drop trailer or multi-stop

How the trailer is loaded and unloaded affects both cost and how much dock time you control.

FTL accessorial charges and how to avoid them

The linehaul rate covers driving from pickup to delivery. These common accessorials are billed on top.

What sets a full truckload rate

Two FTL carriers quoting the same lane can differ widely. These are the factors behind the number.

• Lane balance: a destination that generates little return freight costs more because the truck may run back empty
• Distance: longer lanes cost more in total, though often less per mile
• Fuel surcharge: usually quoted separately and adjusted with a weekly diesel price
• Lead time and season: short-notice loads and peak weeks pay for scarce capacity
• Weight: loads near the legal limit narrow the pool of tractors that can take them
• Appointment and dock terms: tight windows and slow docks raise the rate or the detention risk

FTL trucking from ocean containers

Turning ocean containers into full truckloads near the port is one of the most cost-effective ways to move imports inland. By volume, three 40' containers often fit into two 53' trailers, so fewer trucks travel the long leg and the empty containers go back to the terminal sooner, which limits per diem exposure; see demurrage and detention.

That ratio only holds for freight that cubes out. Weight-bound freight, like the 20' tile container above, rarely combines into fewer trucks, and direct drayage of the container may be the better move. For container dimensions and capacities, see shipping container sizes.

If cartons arrive floor-loaded, container unloading and palletizing make the freight faster to load and to receive. Retail and e-commerce distribution centers often require palletized, labeled freight anyway, so doing it at the port avoids refusals at delivery.

Documents and details for a full truckload

• Bill of lading with shipper, consignee, piece count, weight, commodity and seal number
• PO, SID or load numbers the receiver requires for check-in
• Appointment confirmation number and window
• Load plan for multi-PO or multi-stop trailers
• Declared value, if you want liability above the carrier's standard limit
• In-bond paperwork if the freight has not been released by CBP

Liability and claims on full truckload freight

Interstate motor carriers are liable for actual loss or damage to freight under the Carmack Amendment, 49 U.S.C. 14706. Carriers may limit that liability by a written declared value or agreement, so check the limit in your rate confirmation before shipping high-value goods.

The law also sets minimum claim windows: a carrier cannot require a claim to be filed in less than 9 months, or a lawsuit in less than 2 years from a written claim denial. The strongest claims start with a clear exception noted on the delivery receipt and photos taken before the freight is moved.

Common full truckload shipping mistakes

Most extra FTL costs trace back to a few planning errors that are easy to prevent.

1. 01
   Planning by pallet count alone

   Twenty-six pallets of dense goods can be several thousand pounds over legal weight. Check the average pallet weight against the weigh-out threshold before you book one truck.

2. 02
   Assuming stackable freight is stackable

   Cartons with weak corners or uneven pallet tops crush when double-stacked. Confirm the packaging spec, or plan single-stacked and price accordingly.

3. 03
   Booking pickup without a delivery appointment

   A truck that arrives at a distribution center without an appointment may be turned away, triggering layover and redelivery charges. Book the receiving slot first.

4. 04
   Leaving the PO split to the receiver

   When one trailer carries several purchase orders, mixed pallets slow check-in and can lead to refusals. Group and label by PO at loading.

5. 05
   Shipping valuable goods at the default liability

   Standard carrier limits may be far below the invoice value of electronics or apparel. Declare value or arrange cargo insurance before pickup.

Who ships full truckload freight from the port

Our FTL trucking customers are mostly importers and retailers replenishing distribution centers, manufacturers feeding plants with imported components, and freight forwarders who need a dependable FTL carrier for the inland leg after the ocean move.

A frequent pattern is a short haul to a regional distribution hub such as the Inland Empire, with longer interstate loads to other regions once freight is sorted. Our most common truckload lanes from the ports run to San Diego, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas and Chicago, and loads bound for Mexico or Canada move through our cross-border trucking partners. For smaller orders out of the same container, we combine full truckloads with LTL so one container can serve several destinations.

Frequently asked questions