What Is a Rate Confirmation in Trucking?

A rate confirmation — rate con, for anyone who's dispatched more than a week — is the document a freight broker sends after you agree to haul a load. It puts the deal in writing: what you're hauling, where it picks up and delivers, and exactly what you'll be paid. Once both sides sign it, it's a binding agreement for that load. It is also, for an owner operator, the single most important piece of paper in the business — because it's the one your money depends on.

What's on a rate confirmation

Formats vary by broker, but a legitimate rate con carries the same core blocks:

• The parties — the broker's name, MC number, and contact info, and your carrier details.
• The load — commodity, weight, equipment type, load or reference numbers.
• Pickup and delivery — addresses, dates, appointment times, and any stop-offs.
• The money — line-haul rate, fuel surcharge if broken out, and accessorials: detention, layover, lumper, TONU (truck ordered, not used).
• Terms — payment terms (often 30 days), quick-pay options, and the conditions buried in the fine print.
• Signatures — the broker's and yours. Unsigned, it's a quote; signed, it's the deal.

Rate con vs. BOL vs. load tender

Three documents ride along with every brokered load, and they answer different questions:

The short version: the rate con gets you paid the right amount; the BOL proves you earned it. An invoice without both is a payment delay waiting to happen.

Is a rate confirmation legally binding?

Yes — once signed by both parties, it's an enforceable agreement for that load, usually operating under the broker-carrier agreement you signed when you set up with the broker. Practically, that cuts both ways: the broker owes you the rate on the page, and you owe the service on the page. Anything that changes — an extra stop, a rolled appointment, detention — should arrive as a revised rate con, signed again. "We'll take care of you" on the phone is worth exactly the paper it's written on.

What to check before you sign

• The math. Does the total match what was agreed on the phone — and does the rate actually clear your cost per mile after deadhead? Run it through the load profit calculator before you commit, not after.
• Accessorial terms. Detention after how many hours? Layover at what rate? If it's not written, it doesn't exist.
• The broker. MC number, phone, and email should match the broker's FMCSA record — not just look plausible. Freight fraud runs on lookalike contacts.
• The document itself. Mismatched fonts, odd spacing, a changed remit-to — the classic signs of a tampered rate con. Rate-con fraud and double brokering both usually start with a doctored document.
• Payment terms. Know when you'll be paid and what quick-pay costs before you decide the rate is acceptable.

Keep every rate con — they're your books

Rate cons aren't just paperwork for the load; they're the income side of your bookkeeping and your evidence in any payment dispute. Filing them against each load — with the fuel, tolls, and other costs that load ate — is what turns a folder of PDFs into a real profit-per-mile picture. That's the workflow Trucker Budget was built around: scan a rate con and the app reads it and fills in the load's details in seconds, runs a fraud check for tampering, and ties the income to the load so your numbers stay current without typing.

Frequently asked questions

Is a rate confirmation a contract?

Yes. Once both parties sign, it's a binding agreement for that load under the broker-carrier agreement it references. The rate, accessorials, and terms on the page are what you'll be paid by — not what was said on the phone.

What is the difference between a rate confirmation and a BOL?

The rate confirmation is the money document — between you and the broker, setting what you'll be paid. The BOL is the freight document — issued at the shipper, traveling with the load, proving what was picked up and delivered. You typically need both to get paid.

Can a broker change a rate con after it's signed?

Not unilaterally. Changes should come as a revised rate confirmation both parties sign. If the load changes, get the updated rate con in writing before you keep rolling.

What should I check before signing a rate confirmation?

The total rate and what it includes, pickup and delivery details, accessorial terms, payment terms, and that the broker's MC number and contacts match FMCSA records. If the document looks edited or the deal is too good for the lane, verify first.