Power only hotshot loads: power only with a pickup

What hotshot power only is

"Hotshot" usually means a heavy-duty pickup (often a one-ton dually) pulling a flatbed gooseneck with freight on it. Hotshot power only flips that: the pickup brings only the power, and the trailer belongs to someone else. The driver hooks it, tows it and drops it, just like semi power only, but at a smaller scale.

Typical trailers in power only loads for pickup trucks:

• New trailers from a dealer or manufacturer: gooseneck flatbeds, dump trailers, equipment and utility trailers, car haulers.
• RV and travel trailer moves for dealers, rental companies or owners.
• Livestock and horse trailers going to buyers.
• Repositioning rental trailers between branches.

Most of these are tow away style moves: the trailer goes empty from one place to another. If you know semi tow aways, the logic is the same; see power only tow away vs load out.

CDL and GCWR rules

Weight ratings, not the scale ticket, decide what license you need. Federal rules in 49 CFR 383.91 group vehicles like this:

A one-ton pickup with a 14,000 lb GVWR plus a gooseneck rated at 16,000 lb has a combination rating of 30,000 lb with a towed unit over 10,000 lb, which is Group A. Hotshot drivers who stay under 26,001 lb combined can run without a CDL, but they still need the rest of a for-hire operation:

• A USDOT number and, for interstate for-hire freight, MC authority from FMCSA.
• Liability insurance. For-hire vehicles rated 10,001 lb or more carry the $750,000 federal minimum for general freight under 49 CFR 387.9.
• Medical card, hours of service rules and, where it applies, an ELD.

Check your exact ratings on the door-jamb stickers of the truck and the trailer's VIN plate, and check your state's rules too. This is general information, not legal advice.

Typical hotshot power only loads

Where they come from:

• Trailer dealers and manufacturers that need new trailers delivered.
• Load boards. Search power only equipment types and read the notes for trailer size; DAT's power only categories include tow away and load out. Our power only load boards guide covers how to filter. Hotshot power only load boards are mostly the same boards with smaller trailers posted.
• RV transport companies that contract independent drivers.

Pay is usually a flat rate per move. Because many of these are one-way deliveries to dealers, the empty trip home or to the next trailer decides whether a load is worth it. Price it on all-in miles in the power only load profit calculator, which works for any truck.

Free power only loads for pickup trucks advertised online are usually just free load board trials or lead lists. Treat any offer that asks you for money before you haul as a red flag.

Hotshot power only vs semi power only

Semi power only freight runs largely through trailer pools and drop and hook loads at shippers and retailers, including the networks covered in Amazon Relay and Walmart power only loads.

Our scope: semi tractors only

We only dispatch power only freight for semi tractors, day cab or sleeper, with their own authority. We don't book hotshot loads for pickups. If you are moving up from a pickup to a tractor, or already run a tractor, our power only dispatch service finds trailer-pool and broker freight for you, and the freight we book is on the power only loads page.