Money, Cash Flow & Taxes

A new carrier can be profitable on paper and still die of cash starvation. Brokers pay in 30–45 days; fuel, insurance, and a truck note do not wait. This silo covers the financial plumbing — factoring, fuel cards, tax registrations — and the single number that decides whether a load is worth taking.

Guides in this silo

4.19 min read · updated 2026-06-11
Freight Factoring for New Carriers: When It Saves You and When It Eats You
How factoring works, what recourse vs non-recourse actually covers, the fees hidden below the advertised rate, and how to decide whether a 2.5% discount beats waiting 40 days.
• Factoring converts a 30–45 day invoice into next-day cash for a 1.5–3.5% discount.
• Non-recourse only covers broker insolvency on approved debtors — not disputes, shortages, or claims.
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4.28 min read · updated 2026-05-28
IFTA and IRP: The Two Registrations Everyone Confuses
IRP is how you register the truck across states. IFTA is how you report the fuel you burned in each one. What each costs, what you file, and the recordkeeping that survives an audit.
• IRP = apportioned registration (the plate). IFTA = quarterly fuel tax reconciliation.
• Both apply to interstate vehicles over 26,000 lbs GVW or with three or more axles.
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4.310 min read · updated 2026-06-19
Your Cost Per Mile Is the Only Number That Matters
Build a defensible cost-per-mile model: fixed costs, variable costs, deadhead, and the break-even rate you must clear before accepting a load. Includes a worked one-truck example.
• Cost per mile = (fixed costs + variable costs) ÷ total miles, including deadhead.
• Fixed costs continue whether the truck moves or not — insurance, truck note, permits, ELD.
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4.46 min read · updated 2026-10-22
Trucking Fuel Card Setup Service for New Carriers
Need a fuel card for a new trucking company? Compare credit terms, network limits, fees, fuel discounts, and reporting before choosing a program.
• A fuel card is a payment and reporting tool, not a guarantee of cheaper fuel or approved credit.
• Compare the effective cost after transaction fees, discounts, billing terms, and out-of-network purchases.
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4.57 min read · updated 2026-10-22
New Carrier Factoring Setup Service
Get help comparing trucking factoring offers, recourse terms, reserves, fees, notice of assignment, and exit clauses before you sign.
• Factoring can convert broker receivables into operating cash, but it does not fix a load priced below cost.
• Compare the effective rate, reserves, minimums, recourse, debtor approval rules, and termination terms.
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4.66 min read · updated 2026-10-22
Trucking Bookkeeping Setup Service for a New Carrier
Set up trucking bookkeeping categories, bank feeds, settlement records, fuel tracking, maintenance reserves, and monthly reporting before the first load.
• A bookkeeping setup should separate revenue, fuel, repairs, insurance, permits, financing, driver pay, and owner draws.
• Bank and settlement records are not enough unless they reconcile to units, loads, mileage, and receipts.
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4.76 min read · updated 2026-09-26
Form 2290 Heavy Highway Use Tax: When Truckers File
Understand who files Form 2290, which heavy vehicles are covered, how the tax period works, what Schedule 1 proves, and where the filing fits in a new carrier launch.
• Form 2290 is the federal heavy highway vehicle use tax return for qualifying vehicles used on public highways.
• The filing is generally tied to the vehicle’s first use in the tax period, not the date you received operating authority.
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