3 Things To Look For To Find The Best Cargo Van Load Board

Hauling freight in a cargo van is a good way to make some extra money and work on your own schedule, and the entry costs aren't very high — all you need is a reliable van and a good cargo van load board. Load boards are where freight brokers post the goods that they need hauled, and finding the right one will maximize the amount of money that you're able to make hauling freight in your cargo van. Below, you'll learn more about three things that you should look for in a good cargo van load board.

1. Allows Carrier Reviews and Checks Client Credit Rating

One of the most important features you'll need in a good cargo van load board is the ability for carriers to leave reviews about their experiences with clients. Ideally this should be combined with automatic credit checking of clients by the company operating the load board.

Being able to know if your clients are reliable and creditworthy helps you avoid encountering any problems when you're doing deliveries. Untrustworthy clients may refuse to pay you after you've delivered a load or may contract multiple vans to the same load — when you show up to receive the shipment, someone else may have already taken it. Allowing carriers to post reviews on the load board and having the operators check the creditworthiness of clients makes sure that you'll only be working with clients that you can trust.

2. High Load Availability in Your Region

Using cargo van load boards can sometimes be a hassle for freight brokers, since there's so many of them — brokers sometimes need to post loads on multiple sites when they're trying to find a carrier for their shipment. As a result, load boards tend to be highly fragmented.

When you're looking for a good load board to use for your cargo van, make sure that it's frequently used by clients and carriers in your region. If you're doing long-haul shipments in your van, you'll need to find one that's popular with freight brokers nationwide. When you're trying to make a living by delivering freight with your van, having the most jobs available to you on a good load board will ensure that you're not stuck waiting around for something to pick up and deliver.

3. Low Fees

Finally, a good load board should charge low fees or should be free. Delivering goods in a cargo van has a number of expenses associated with it, like paying for gas and repairs on your vehicle. High fees charged to view postings on a load board will be an added expense on top of that, and the fees can seriously eat into your profit from hauling freight. When you're searching for a cargo van load board to use, make sure that the fees that they charge to use the load board are reasonable.

Ultimately, delivering freight in your van by picking up jobs on a cargo van load board is a good way to earn extra money, but you'll need to find the right load board in order to maximize your income. A good load board should allow you to avoid potentially untrustworthy clients and should have numerous loads available in your area. Several load boards exist specifically for cargo vans, so search around until you're able to find the one that's popular in your region and that charges low fees.