A folder of invoices and a list of runs that do not agree
One haulier did most of the extra trunk runs last month, another covered two weeks while your own driver was off, and a third did a couple of Saturday runs to the second hub. Each sends an invoice in their own format. Each has a slightly different idea of how many runs they did, and one has charged for waiting time at the hub.
The office checks each invoice against the trunk sheets, the planner's diary and the hub arrival times. Some runs cannot be confirmed. The hauliers ring asking when they will be paid.
Runs are agreed by phone and recorded nowhere
Subcontracted trunks are often booked at short notice by the planner, on a phone call, at a rate agreed on that call.
- Rates differ by haulier, trailer type, hub and day of week.
- Waiting time and extra drops are agreed on the night.
- Proof that the run happened is split between your manifests and the hub's arrival records.
- Invoices arrive weeks later in different formats.
So checking an invoice means reconstructing a month of phone calls.
What the paper trail costs
Office time goes on checking invoices, and disputes with hauliers damage relationships you rely on when your own vehicles are short. Mistakes go both ways: runs paid twice, and runs not paid, which is worse for goodwill.
You also cannot easily see what subcontracted trunking costs you each month, by hub or by night, which matters when you decide whether to add another vehicle of your own.
Good subcontractors are hard to find at short notice, especially at peak. A haulier who is paid late, or has to argue over every invoice, is less likely to answer the phone the next time your trailer is overfull at six in the evening.
How we log and pay subcontracted runs
- The planner books a subcontracted run on a simple screen: haulier, date, hub, trailer and agreed rate, picked from the haulier's rate list or entered for a one-off.
- The haulier gets a confirmation by email or text, which they can reply to if anything is wrong.
- The run is linked to the trunk manifest, and completion is confirmed from your departure scan and the hub arrival data where available.
- Waiting time and extras are recorded against the run when they happen, with a reason.
- At month end, a statement for each haulier lists every run and extra. If you have self-billing agreements in place, it is issued as a self-bill; otherwise the haulier's invoice is matched against it.
- Approved amounts are posted to Xero, Sage or your accounts package, and the haulier gets a remittance.
| Item | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Booking | Phone call, maybe a diary note | Logged with agreed rate |
| Proof of run | Searched for later | Linked to manifest and scans |
| Extras | Argued at invoice time | Recorded on the night |
| Payment | Invoice checked by hand | Statement matched or self-billed |
Self-billing has its own rules and needs an agreement with each haulier. Your accountant should confirm how you set it up; we build the process around what they decide.
Month end with the subcontractors
Every run is in the log before the month closes. Hauliers see the same list you do, so disputes are rare and short. Payment runs are prepared from the log, not rebuilt from paper, and the depot can see what subcontracted trunking costs by hub and by week.
Sound familiar?
- Subcontracted trunk runs are booked by phone.
- Haulier invoices rarely match your records first time.
- Waiting time claims are hard to check.
- Hauliers chase for payment.
- You do not know what subcontracted trunking costs each month.