Reading a rate confirmation before you sign it

Six lines worth checking every time. Two of them cost money quietly.

Author: The LineHaul desk
Published: 29 Jul 2026
Updated: 29 Jul 2026
Read time: 8 min

In short

Six lines are worth checking every time: the rate and what it includes, detention, the lumper, the MC number, the appointment terms, and anything that contradicts your lease.

Six lines, and two of them cost money quietly

A rate confirmation is the whole deal on one page, and it is the only document that will exist if something goes wrong. It takes ninety seconds to read properly and most disputes come from the two lines nobody reads.

1 · The rate, and what it includes

Linehaul, fuel surcharge and accessorials are three different numbers. If the confirmation shows one number, find out which. 'All-in' is a perfectly good arrangement, but you want to know that is what you agreed rather than discovering it at settlement.

2 · Detention: after how long, and capped at what

The first of the two quiet ones. Free time, hourly rate, and the cap. See the detention post for what we ask for and why the cap is the part that matters.

3 · Who pays the lumper

The second quiet one. Whether it is reimbursed, advanced, or yours, and against what evidence. A lumper receipt photographed at the dock is worth more than a lumper receipt remembered on Friday.

4 · The MC number, and whether it matches

Check the MC number on the confirmation against the entity in the signature block, and against who is actually asking you to haul it. A mismatch is the classic double-brokering tell, and it is the difference between being paid by somebody who owes you and chasing somebody who does not.

5 · Appointment terms, and what happens if you miss

FCFS or a hard appointment, and the consequence of being late. A stated penalty is at least a known quantity; an unstated one is decided afterwards by the person who is not paying it.

6 · Anything that contradicts your lease

Nothing on a rate confirmation overrides the agreement you signed with your carrier. If a term on the confirmation conflicts with the lease, whether on charge-backs, on payment timing or on who carries what, the lease is the document that governs, and the conflict is worth raising before you roll rather than after.

The federal rules that govern what a lease must contain are in the library; the confirmation is a trip document, not a substitute for them.

A mismatch is the classic double-brokering tell, and it is the difference between being paid by somebody who owes you and chasing somebody who does not.

Questions we get

Which two lines cost money quietly?

Detention and the lumper. Both are usually fine and both are usually skimmed, which is exactly why they are the two that turn into a dispute at settlement.

The confirmation contradicts my lease. Which one wins?

The lease. Nothing on a rate confirmation overrides the agreement you signed with your carrier, and the conflict is worth raising before you roll rather than after.

What does an MC number mismatch mean?

Check the number on the confirmation against the entity in the signature block and against whoever is actually asking you to haul it. A mismatch is the classic double-brokering tell.

Is an all-in rate a problem?

No. It is a perfectly good arrangement. You just want to know that is what you agreed rather than discovering it at settlement.

The rule behind this

Your Truth-in-Leasing rights, in the words of the rule →In the resource library · last checked 15 Aug 2026