How to Start a Hot Shot Business
How to Start a Hot Shot Business
The power to start a hot shot trucking business at your fingertips.
Considering starting a hot shot trucking company and not sure where to begin? Here’s how you can get started. DAT Copilot™ Authority Program is here to help you with the paperwork and process of getting your authority, so you can hit the road faster. Plus, with the DAT One Load Board and the new DAT One mobile app, you can easily search for loads, post your own, and find nearby truck services to help you grow your business.
- Never miss an opportunity to find hot shot loads.
- Never miss the services you need while on the road.
- Let DAT handle the paperwork for you.
Never miss an opportunity to find hot shot loads.
The DAT One mobile app makes it simple to find the best-paying loads.
Find hot shot loads on the largest freight marketplace with DAT One. If you miss the perfect load, chances are, a new load will be added later that is a perfect fit. And Instead of having to keep checking the load board, DAT One allows you to set alerts for loads that match your criteria.
Never miss the services you need while on the road.
Designed with carriers and owner/operators in mind, DAT One has trucker-specific maps.
In addition to making finding hot shot loads a snap, the new DAT One mobile app can help you find often hard-to-locate services on the road with trucker-specific maps that include essentials such as fuel, parking, weigh stations, and other services, so you can get on the road and start growing your business.
Let DAT handle the paperwork for you.
The DAT Copilot™ Authority Program has all the tools to keep hot shot trucking companies safe, compliant, and ready to grow.
Starting a hot shot business can often come with a lot of paperwork. Let the DAT Copilot™ Authority Program help you quickly get your MC and DOT numbers, federal and state permits, and more. We stay on top of ever-changing compliance regulations so you never have to worry about staying up-to-date.
"Some say it's simple to get your authority, and that you should save your money and do it yourself. Other people, including myself, are not sure where to even begin. I used a service provided by DAT to get my authority. It was important to me that it was done right the first time, by people who have done this before."
- Chad Boblett - Boblett Brothers Trucking
"They took me by the hand an led me through all of the difficult and confusing steps to ensure that I started off on the right foot. I cannot say it any clearer than these folks know what it's all about."
- Gregg Knight, LTL Trucking
When shippers and brokers have relatively small loads that need to be delivered quickly, they call upon the services of hot shot truckers. These drivers and operators specialize in delivering time-sensitive, project-critical loads like agricultural equipment, construction equipment and materials, heavy machinery, and more. Hot shot drivers typically operate super-duty pickups with trailers rather than heavy-duty, Class 8 semis.
As insurance requirements become more and more strict, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is trying to steer new drivers away from earning their commercial driver’s license (CDL) and immediately buying a semi truck — a career move that often leads to failure.
Instead, the strategic move is to build up driving experience on a hot shot truck while your CDL matures, that way getting insurance when making the jump to a semi is much easier. Finding hot shot loads with DAT One is great for carriers wondering how to start a non-CDL hot shot business.
Hot shot load boards like DAT make it easy to find small-truck loads. Here’s how to find hot shot loads on the DAT board:
- Post Your Truck: Enter detailed information about your truck to help brokers find you and to make sure you stand out.
- General Equipment Search: Do a general search and choose “partial” load and the equipment types and filters that fit your operation. This might find you more loads since brokers don’t always label loads as “hot shots” even if they can be hauled by on a hot shot trailer.
- Specific Equipment Search: Do a specific search entering “flatbed hot shot” as the equipment type for both “full” and “partial” loads.
With all of these searches, you can favorite the search and set an alarm so that you’re notified whenever a new load fitting the search criteria is added.
The DAT One mobile app now helps carriers find everything they need to save time and money while planning routes based on equipment and cargo. These carrier-specific maps help you easily find truck parking, truck stops, the lowest fuel prices, weigh stations, rest areas, hotels for truckers, and truck services, along with the most nearby hot shot loads in the industry.
A significant advantage of hot shot trucking is that there’s a lower barrier to entry and lower operational costs. Truck payments, for example, can reach as high as $2,500-3,000 a month on Class 8 semis, but are often closer to $1,000 a month for pickups. Plus, smaller vehicles generally offer better fuel economy. This typically allows hot shot truckers to make as much as — if not more than — Class 8 drivers. These cost savings are often passed onto customers as well.
Let DAT help you grow your hot shotting company
For more information on how the DAT Copilot™ Authority Program can help you start your hot shot business, give us a call at 866-265-3172 or complete the inquiry form today.
DAT Copilot™
Authority Bundle
- Federal MC Authority ($300)
- BOC-3 MC Authority ($30)
- 50% off DAT One for 6 months (from $150)