Carrier type
Getting cargo van contracts
A cargo van contract is repeat freight agreed directly with a shipper or broker: set lanes, set terms, and work you can plan a week around. Load boards fill gaps today. Contracts are how van carriers stop rebuilding their week from the spot board every morning.
By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 18, 2026
Contract freight versus spot freight
Spot freight is a single load posted for whoever can take it now, priced for that day. Contract freight is an agreement to move a shipper's recurring loads on stated lanes, at stated rates, for a stated period. The van work is the same. What changes is who finds the freight, how steady it is, and which of you carries the risk when a lane goes quiet. DAT's carrier guidance draws the same line: contracts suit carriers who want planned work, while the spot market suits carriers filling gaps.
Neither channel removes the federal entry requirements. Companies that transport passengers in interstate commerce for compensation, or transport federally regulated commodities owned by others (or arrange their transport) for compensation in interstate commerce, need interstate operating authority in addition to a USDOT number. The startup sequence in the cargo van business guide comes first. Contracts come after the authority and insurance are in place.
Where van contracts come from
Four channels produce most direct van work. Local shippers with daily parts, medical, print, or e-commerce runs contract carriers who can cover a route every day. Brokers with recurring van freight put proven carriers on those lanes first instead of posting them. Expedited and courier networks enroll van owner-operators for time sensitive loads. And shippers you already served well on spot loads are the warmest contract leads you have: one clean month on a lane is the pitch.
The general business setup underneath a contract, structure, registration, and tax IDs, follows the same sequence the SBA lays out for any new business. The trucking layer on top of it is covered in finding loads with a new MC, which walks the board and broker channels a new authority starts with.
What to check before you sign
Read for six things. The rate basis: per mile, per route, or per day, and whether fuel movement changes it. Payment terms: how many days after delivery proof you are paid, and what paperwork starts that clock. Insurance: the cargo and liability limits the shipper requires, which often sit above the federal filing minimum. Waiting and accessorial pay: what an hour at a dock earns, in writing. Exit terms: how much notice either side needs to end the lane. Exclusivity: whether the contract stops you hauling for anyone else. If a term matters and it is not in the text, it does not exist.
Price the lane before you answer. Add your loaded miles, the empty miles to the pickup and home, and the hours the route takes. A contract that pays well per mile can still lose money when it strands you far from your next load twice a week.
Earning the first contract
Shippers hand contracts to carriers who already ran the freight without drama. Start on the lane through a board or broker, track your on-time record, then ask the shipper or broker what their recurring volume looks like and offer to cover it on a trial period. Keep the spot channels open while you do this. The first 30 days checklist sequences the early moves that make a new authority look contract ready.