ENTRY 01 / HAZMAT AND TANKER DISPATCH
Hazmat dispatch service that matches the load to your paperwork
Hazmat and tanker freight pays for what you carry in your wallet and your files: endorsements, registration, insurance limits, training records. Our hazmat dispatch service books only loads your authority, insurance and equipment are set up for, confirms product, class, placards and tank needs before the rate con reaches you, and plans parking and routes around the rules. You sign every load.
- Product checked first
- 5% of gross
- You sign every load
Dry van and flatbed hazmat, and tank work: fuel, chemicals, food-grade liquids and dry bulk, under your own authority.
We keep a record of your endorsements, insurance limits, registration and trailer specs, and check every offer against it before it reaches you.
ENTRY 02 / REQUIREMENTS LEDGER
Tick what you have. See which loads it opens.
Hazmat loads are gated by credentials more than by equipment. Tick what is in place for your truck and company. The ledger shows which freight that opens, and what is still missing before a broker will tender the load.
HAZMAT REQUIREMENTS LEDGER
Insurance limits gate the most loads. Federal minimums under 49 CFR 387.9 run from $1 million for many hazmat and oil loads to $5 million for certain bulk and high-hazard materials, and shippers often want more. A load above your limits is a load you can't take.
SOURCE: 49 CFR 387.9, OCT 2026
Registration and permits. PHMSA registration applies to many placarded loads, and an FMCSA Hazmat Safety Permit is required for certain highly hazardous materials. We record what you hold and only send loads that match.
ENTRY 03 / RATES
What moves hazmat and tanker rates
No public national average covers hazmat or tank freight the way the big boards cover vans and flatbeds, so we don't pretend there is one. Rates come lane by lane and product by product. What pushes them up: fewer qualified carriers, higher insurance requirements, special trailers, wash-out costs and longer loading times. What pulls them down: dedicated shipper fleets on the same lanes, and empty tank miles back to the next product.
Tank dispatch is about the next product. A tanker that hauled one product may need a wash-out before the next. We plan reloads with compatible products where possible, so the truck isn't paying for a wash and an empty trip on every load.
Dry hazmat in vans and on flatbeds often pays a premium over the same freight unplaced, because fewer carriers carry the endorsement and insurance. It is a good way to add hazmat without a tank trailer.
Our guide to the tanker owner-operator business covers trailers, products, startup costs and how tank carriers get paid.
ENTRY 04 / WHAT WE CONFIRM
Tanker dispatch checks before any rate con reaches you
With hazmat, a missing detail isn't an inconvenience; it can be a violation or a safety problem. These are confirmed with the broker or shipper and written on the rate con before you see the load.
- Product and class. Proper shipping name, hazard class or division, and UN number.
- Placards and papers. Whether the load is placarded and that shipping papers and emergency information come with it.
- Quantity and packaging. Bulk or non-bulk, and the total quantity, which decides insurance and permit needs.
- Tank type and condition. Trailer spec, compartments, last product hauled and any wash-out required.
- Loading and unloading. Who loads, hoses and pumps, and how long the terminal takes.
- Route and parking. Restricted routes and tunnels, and where the truck can legally stop.
Parking and attendance. 49 CFR Part 397 sets attendance, parking and routing rules for hazmat vehicles, and some materials can't be left unattended or parked near the road. We plan fuel stops and breaks around them.
SOURCE: 49 CFR PART 397, OCT 2026
This page summarizes rules; it isn't legal advice. Check the regulations for the materials you haul.
Tank trailers we dispatch
- Petroleum tankers for fuel and oil products, usually multi-compartment aluminum.
- Chemical tankers, often stainless or lined, for acids, solvents and industrial liquids.
- Food-grade tankers for liquids like oils, syrups and juices, with strict wash and sanitation records. Not hazmat, but the same planning.
- Dry bulk pneumatic tankers for powders and pellets such as cement, flour or plastic.
Each type has its own products, terminals and wash rules. We dispatch to what your trailer is built and cleared for.
A TANKER WEEK · EXAMPLE, NOT A REAL CARRIER
Monday a chemical load from a plant to a distributor, placarded, with terminal detention written on the rate con. Tuesday the next load is a compatible product from a terminal 60 miles away, so no wash-out. Wednesday a long hold at the receiver; the clock and paperwork go in with delivery. Thursday the tank needs a wash before a different product, so the desk books it at a wash rack on the route and times the next pickup around it. Friday a short load toward home. Every load was matched to the owner's endorsements and limits before it was offered.
Why hazmat and tank owners hire a dispatcher
Fewer loads fit
Each load must match your endorsements, insurance and trailer. Sorting for those takes time.
Terminal time
Refineries and chemical plants can hold trucks for hours. Detention terms on paper protect the day.
Wash-outs and compatibility
Planning the next product decides whether a tanker week pays.
Legal stops
Finding a lawful place to stop with a placarded load takes planning, not luck.
ENTRY 05 / FEE AND QUESTIONS
The fee, and hazmat dispatch questions
Hazmat and tank work pays the same tier as every truck we dispatch: 5% of gross with one truck and an MC past six months, 7% while the MC is newer, 4% for two or more trucks. On an EXAMPLE $6,800 tanker week, that is $340 at the standard rate. No setup fee, no contract, and nothing on a load you decline. See the dispatch pricing page.
To start, send your MC and USDOT number, a certificate of insurance showing your limits, a W-9, your endorsements, PHMSA registration if you hold one, trailer specs, your ELD provider and your notice of assignment if you factor. As a CDL carrier with your own authority, your drug and alcohol testing program must be in place.
Q01Is tanker work good for an owner-operator?
It can pay well because fewer carriers have the equipment, endorsements and insurance. It also costs more: tank trailers, wash-outs, higher insurance limits and more training. Liquid surge makes driving harder. Owners who build steady shipper or broker relationships for one or two product types usually do best.
Q02What do I need to haul hazmat?
A CDL with the hazmat (H) endorsement, which requires a TSA security threat assessment, plus the tank (N) endorsement for tank vehicles. As a carrier: the right insurance limits, PHMSA registration when your loads require it, hazmat training records, shipping papers, placards and emergency response information, and in some cases an FMCSA Hazmat Safety Permit.
Q03What insurance do hazmat carriers need?
Federal minimums depend on what you haul: $1 million of financial responsibility for many hazmat and oil loads, and $5 million for certain hazardous materials in bulk and some high-hazard classes. Shippers and brokers often require more. Confirm your limits with your insurance agent against 49 CFR 387.9.
Q04Do hazmat loads have special parking rules?
Yes. 49 CFR Part 397 covers attendance, parking, fires and routing for hazmat vehicles. Some materials, such as certain explosives, can't be parked near the traveled road or left unattended. We plan stops around those rules so the truck isn't stuck with nowhere legal to park.
Q05Do I need a PHMSA registration?
Many hazmat carriers do. PHMSA requires registration for anyone who transports certain types and quantities of hazardous materials, including amounts that require placards. Registration runs on PHMSA's own yearly cycle and has a fee. Check the PHMSA registration rules for the materials you plan to haul.
Hazmat loads that match your credentials, signed by you
Apply in about a minute. Tell us your endorsements, limits and trailer; every hazmat rate con lands in your inbox with the product and placards spelled out.