How it runs for trucking and logistics companies
The controller also prepares lender and equipment-finance packages, answers your CPA's questions and documents your accounting policies. Decisions stay with you.
What are outsourced controller services?
Outsourced controller services provide the review layer that sits between bookkeeping and the owner: a senior accountant who checks the close, owns the accounting policies, tests the controls around cash and spending, and explains the financial statements. The controller does not do daily posting. They make sure what was posted is right and documented before anyone relies on it.
What we handle for trucking and logistics companies
- Monthly close review with written variance commentary on per-mile results, margin and AR
- Load cut-off, fuel and settlement accruals and factoring reserves challenged each month
- Thirteen-week cash forecast including factor releases, loan payments, insurance and permits
- Lender, equipment-finance and CPA packages prepared and their questions answered on your behalf
- Accounting policy notes for revenue, factoring, equipment, per diem and settlements
The KPI that matters here
Controller review and variance commentary delivered with every close, and a cash forecast updated weekly.
Trucking compliance notes
FMCSA and federal filings
Operating authority, USDOT registration, the Unified Carrier Registration fee, IRP apportioned plates and the annual Form 2290 heavy vehicle use tax (due August 31 for most fleets) each carry a cost and a date. We keep those dates on the close calendar, record the fees against the right units and keep insurance certificates and down payments tracked. Filing stays with you or your compliance service.
IFTA fuel tax
Each quarter, miles by jurisdiction from the ELD and gallons by jurisdiction from fuel-card statements are compiled into IFTA workpapers, with the net tax due or refund calculated per state. The ledger fuel account is reconciled to the same gallons so the return and the books agree. You or your permit service submits the return.
Factoring agreements
Recourse and non-recourse factoring agreements set the advance rate, the fee schedule and when chargebacks apply. We record advances as a liability or as AR sold depending on the agreement, show fees as finance cost and reconcile the reserve account monthly so you can see what the factor is holding. We do not negotiate the agreement.
Driver settlements and worker classification
Owner-operators under lease are paid on settlement statements with deductions the lease must list, and receive a 1099 at year end; company drivers are W-2 employees with per diem treated under IRS transportation-industry rules. We prepare settlements and payroll journals from the agreements you provide and flag classification questions for your counsel. We do not decide who is a contractor.
Trucking software we work in
- QuickBooks Online
- Xero
- Gusto
- Bill.com
- TMS exports (McLeod, Trimble TMW, Tailwind, Truckstop)
- Motive and Samsara ELD reports
- Factoring portals (RTS, OTR Solutions, TAFS, Triumph)
- Fuel cards (WEX, EFS, Comdata)
- All 50 platforms
More for trucking and logistics companies
Other services for trucking
Controller services in other industries
Frequently asked questions
What does a controller review add for a trucking company?
Judgment and forecasting. Bookkeeping records what happened; the controller review tests whether cut-off, accrual and factoring estimates are reasonable, explains why cost per mile or margin moved, keeps a rolling cash forecast that includes loan and insurance payments, and prepares the packages lenders want. For a carrier it means equipment and factoring decisions are made on reconciled numbers every month.
Can the controller help us decide whether to leave the factor?
The controller can prepare the comparison: factoring fees over the past twelve months, the cash-flow effect of waiting 30 to 45 days for brokers, quick-pay costs, and what a bank line would cost at the rates your bank quotes. The decision and any financing negotiation stay with you. We do not give financing advice or arrange credit.
Is an outsourced controller enough for a carrier with a brokerage?
For most owner-led carriers with a brokerage arm, yes, provided bookkeeping and close run on a fixed calendar. The controller review covers asset-based and brokered margins, carrier payables, bond and authority costs and the cash forecast. Companies preparing for audited statements or a sale may also need a CPA firm, and we work alongside them.
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