As an owner operator in the trucking industry, finding the right factoring company to work with is crucial. The right factoring partner can greatly improve an owner operator’s cash flow and financial stability.
Having access to your earned money faster and with fewer deductions allows you to cover expenses, invest in equipment, maintain reserves, and ultimately grow your small trucking business more effectively.
This guide will highlight some of the best factoring companies for trucking owner operators to choose from in the transportation sector.
Quicklook: Top factoring companies for owner operators
- Best for owner operators: TAFS
- Best for hotshot trucking: Porter Freight Funding
- Best for discounted rates: RTS Financial
- Best for advance rates: Apex Capital
- Best for digital invoice management: Triumph Business Capital
Best factoring companies for trucking companies and owner operators
If you’re wondering what the best factoring company for trucking owner operators is, you can’t go wrong with any of the options on this list.
TAFS
With over 20 years specializing in transport and freight factoring, no firm understands owner operators’ working capital and cash flow management needs better than TAFS.
By funding approved invoices within 24 hours and charging competitive base rates as low as 1.5%, TAFS provides the fast liquidity injection necessary for truckers to stay productive and profitable. It also saves owner operators 10 to 85 cents per gallon by partnering with 1,200+ national fuel centers at steep discounts only available to TAFS clients.
Best for: Owner operators
Features:
- 24-hour turnaround options
- Nationwide fuel discounts
- Low rates for one-truck companies
- Open 365 days per year
Benefits:
- Fast funding
- Recourse and non-recourse factoring
- Positive industry reputation
- Industry experience
Disadvantages:
- Loan amounts and rates not provided upfront
- Difficult to converse with customer service agents
Pricing: 1.5% base rate
Porter Freight Funding
Catering directly to hotshot haulers, Porter Freight Funding understands the tight deadlines of high priority freight. By funding approved invoices in just 12 hours, hotshot truckers get quick cash in hand to cover time-sensitive operational costs as they transport urgent shipment, making Porter Freight the best factoring company for hotshot trucking.
Best for: Hotshot trucking
Features:
- Mobile app
- Dedicated account executive
- Vetted dispatchers
- Fuel cards
- Fuel discounts
Benefits:
- Same-day funding
- No monthly minimums
- Yearly, bi-annual or month-to-month contracts
- Dedicated client care
- Fuel advance of 45% of the load
- Dispatchers for the following:
- Reefer
- Hotshot
- Flatbed
- Van
- Power-only
- No minimum factoring requirement for companies with no more than two trucks
Disadvantages:
- Not specifically built for fleets
Pricing: 1.5% – 3% negotiable rates
RTS Financial
Boasting the most competitively priced rate structure in the industry, RTS Financial offers highly discounted fees as low as 0.49% for qualifying invoice volumes. This allows even the smallest owner-ops to maximize profits by keeping up to 99.5% of the money owed them.
Best for: Discounted rates
Features: Only non-recourse factoring
Benefits:
- No start-up fee
- No minimum fee
- No hidden fees
Disadvantages:
- Issues with communication
- Described as confusing for users
Pricing: 0.49% – 2% based on monthly invoices
Apex Capital Corp
Unlike the typical 90% advance rate, Apex Capital issues advances up to 99% of the invoice value for loads. Their steep advances get nearly the full owed dollar amount to box truck drivers quickly so they can cover gas, repairs, payroll and all overhead costs.
Best for: Advance rates
Special features: Apex 24/7 Roadside Rescue
Benefits:
- Great customer service
- No monthly minimum volume fees
- No long-term contracts
- Fuel cards with discounts
Disadvantages: Must process invoices through Apex Capital
Pricing: Case-by-case
Triumph Business Capital
Triumph Business Capital offers the outstanding MyTriumph online portal so you can view and manage your invoices digitally. You can run and view reports and check on the status of your invoices. Triumph Business Capital makes the list because of its low minimum revenue requirement and high factoring capacity. It offers flexible solutions for many fleets with funding up to 100% of the invoice value.
Best for: Digital invoice management
Features:
- Portal for easy invoice management
- Online credit checks
- Up to 100% advance on invoices
- Fuel card discounts
- Flexible qualification requirements
Benefits:
- Specialized in invoice factoring
- Recourse and non-recourse factoring available
- Option to factor some or all of your invoices
Disadvantages:
- Application requires hard credit pull
- Factor fees are not transparent
- Lower credit score can mean less favorable rates
Pricing: $300 origination fee plus factoring fee
What is factoring in trucking?
Factoring is a financial service used extensively in the trucking industry that allows transport companies to sell their accounts receivable invoices at a discount to a factoring company in exchange for immediate working capital. It effectively accelerates cash flow for truckers.
Typically, it takes 30 days or longer for trucking companies to receive payments from brokers and shippers after submitting a signed bill of lading. Factoring allows them to sell these invoices for a percentage of their total value so they receive funding within 24-48 hours instead.
While the trucking company takes a small fee deduction off the top, they gain quick access to capital to cover expenses like fuel, repairs, insurance and driver payroll while waiting for actual customer payments.
By providing faster cash for unpaid invoices and freight bills, factoring gives trucking companies increased financial flexibility, greater stability, and improved liquidity essential for handling day-to-day operating costs.
Types of factoring in the trucking industry
There are a few different types of factoring services for trucking companies used to improve cash flow against unpaid invoices:
- Recourse factoring: With recourse factoring, the factoring company takes over handling the invoices and collecting payments from the trucking company’s customers. They assume the risk if customers default on paying. Recourse factoring deducts around 1-3% off the invoice amounts purchased.
- Non-recourse factoring: Non-recourse factoring still has the factor managing invoicing/collections, but the trucking company shoulders payment default risk. Rates range from 3-5% of invoice totals.
- Spot factoring: Spot factoring allows truckers to sell select invoices to a factor on a one-off basis as needed for immediate funds, rather than sell all their receivables. This flexibility preserves the ability to collect payments directly too.
- Hybrid factoring: Hybrid factoring blends recourse and non-recourse models, with factors assuming just a portion of the default risk for a rate in the middle of the two. This provides a balance of risk transfer and savings.
Find the best truck factoring company that fits your needs
It’s vital for owner-operators to find the ideal truck factoring company that aligns with their particular business needs and goals. With countless factoring firms targeting the transportation space, it pays to evaluate what truly matters most.
Not leveraging a factoring company can stretch an owner-operator’s cash flow to the brink while awaiting invoice payments from brokers and shippers over 30+ days. And selecting the wrong factor who charges high rates or has poor customer service minimizes the revenue you need to operate sustainably over the long-run.
Without adequate working capital from a factoring partner that fits your business goals, truckers risk falling behind on the fuel payments, truck maintenance, insurance premiums, and driver salaries required to keep their wheels turning profitably.
Determining the specific challenges you face operationally and financially and matching with a factoring provider that addresses those concerns through their rates, processes and resources leads to a more profitable relationship, fueling sustainable growth for years to come. The right fit makes all the difference.
FAQ
A competitive truck factoring rate typically ranges from 1-3% of the invoice value; securing a rate on the lower half of that range, around 1-2%, would be considered a good deal.
Factoring essentially exchanges a small percentage of freight invoices for quick, flexible cash flow, which allows truckers to better manage expenses; for that immediate working capital and cash flow stability, the fees are generally worth the cost.
Factoring contracts with trucking companies do not lock in the business for specific long term commitments and generally allow the ability to exit agreements in 30- to 60-day notice periods. Most factoring firms do this because they aim to provide flexibility to truckers and the operators can cancel services anytime if they feel factors do not continue providing strong value.
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