Detention is the most preventable accessorial in freight. A single 4-hour wait can wipe out the savings you negotiated on linehaul. Here’s how to keep drivers loading and unloading on time.
1. Confirm Appointments in Writing
Every dock should have a confirmed appointment number and time window before the truck rolls. Ad-hoc “first come first served” facilities are detention factories.
2. Pre-Stage Freight
Have pallets staged, labeled, and ready 30 minutes before the appointment. The truck shouldn’t wait on your forklift driver to find product.
3. Document In/Out Times
Have the dock guard or receiving clerk note arrival, in-dock, and departure times on the BOL — initialed. Without timestamps, you can’t dispute (or recover) detention charges either way.
4. Avoid Friday Afternoons + Monday Mornings
Friday afternoon = backlog from the week. Monday morning = backlog from the weekend. Tuesday-Thursday mid-morning is the sweet spot at most DCs.
5. Communicate Special Requirements Upfront
Liftgate? Inside delivery? PPE required? Lumper service required? Site contact name and number? Get all of this on the load tender — not discovered when the driver arrives.
Bonus: Negotiate Free Time
Standard is 2 hours free at pickup + 2 hours free at delivery. If you need 4 hours, negotiate that into the rate upfront — it’s usually cheaper than hourly detention.
Skyline tracks every minute of detention and disputes spurious charges with carriers on your behalf. Talk to us.