What is power only trucking? How it works for owner operators

Power only trucking means your tractor and driver pull a trailer that belongs to someone else. You hook to their trailer, haul the load and unhook at the other end. For an owner operator, that's freight you can haul with just your truck.

How a trailer interchange works

Before you pull a trailer you don't own, you'll usually sign a trailer interchange agreement for it. It's the contract that hands you the trailer for the haul and says who pays if it gets damaged.

1. Sign the agreement. Before you do, read when your responsibility for the trailer starts and when it ends.
2. Check the trailer. Walk around it and photograph any damage before you pull out, so it's on record.
3. Haul it. While the trailer is in your possession, damage to it is usually yours to pay.
4. Drop it. When you unhook, take photos again. They show the condition you left it in.

What to check before you hook up

The trailer

It isn't your trailer, but you're the one driving it. Under 49 CFR 392.7, you can't drive until you're satisfied the brakes, lights, tires, wheels and coupling devices are in good working order.

Walk the trailer before you hook up:

• Air lines and gladhands: connected tight, with no leaks.
• Tires and wheels: look for low tread, cuts, bulges and missing lug nuts.
• Lights and reflectors: every lamp works once you plug in.
• Coupling: the fifth wheel is locked on the kingpin, and the landing gear is all the way up.
• Doors and body: no holes in the roof or walls, and the doors close and latch.

If something makes the trailer unsafe, don't take it. Ask whoever gave you the load for another trailer.

The paperwork

Look for proof the trailer passed its annual inspection in the last 12 months. Under 49 CFR 396.17, a motor carrier can't use a vehicle without that proof on it. It can be the inspection report, or a sticker or decal.

Your insurance

Trailer interchange coverage pays for covered damage to a trailer you don't own, hauled under a written interchange agreement. Your own physical damage coverage usually won't pay for that trailer, because it isn't yours. The Hartford's explainer walks through it.

Example: another truck hits the trailer while it's parked at a fuel stop. Without this coverage, you could have to pay for the repair.

Before your first power only load, ask your agent if your policy has it, and what the limit and deductible are.

Who power only suits

It suits a carrier with a tractor and a driver who would rather not pay for a trailer. Think of an owner operator with no trailer yet, or a small fleet adding a truck before it adds a trailer. It also keeps you running while your own trailer is in the shop.

Power only loads with Bainbridge

We broker freight to motor carriers. Power only, dry van and flatbed work is available. Carriers interchange with our 53' dry vans.

Carriers book days with us, and we broker loads to them. The work is dedicated local freight, in the markets listed on our site.

• Carrier setup: the four steps from application to your first load.
• Booking to delivery: how a week runs, from booking your days to the signed BOL.
• Carrier payments: upload the signed BOL after delivery, and if we pay you directly, you're paid the next business day.
• Verify Bainbridge: match MC 1390499 and USDOT 3832071 to our FMCSA record before you haul.

Apply in about two minutes. Questions first? Call (303) 276-2378.