Choosing Flatbed Trucking Companies

Flatbed trucking companies vary widely in carrier network size, equipment access, and experience, making it worthwhile to compare providers before booking. LAC™ has coordinated flatbed freight for 25+ years through a network of top-tier trucking partners.

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What Flatbed Trucking Covers

Flatbed trucking moves freight too wide, tall, or heavy for an enclosed trailer, using an open-deck trailer that allows loading from the side, top, or rear rather than through rear dock doors. Common freight includes steel, machinery, and construction materials that wouldn’t fit inside a standard dry van without disassembly. The category spans standard flatbeds through specialized equipment like step decks and RGNs, depending on the height, weight, and loading needs of the specific shipment.

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How to Evaluate Flatbed Carriers

Compare flatbed carriers on fleet capacity, trailer variety, geographic coverage, and safety credentials, such as adherence to CVSA inspection standards and, for cross-border moves, CTPAT certification, rather than name recognition alone. A carrier network with strong equipment variety reduces the risk of delays when a specific trailer type, like a step deck or RGN, is needed for a particular load on short notice. Ask how a prospective carrier handles capacity during peak seasons, since that answer often says more about the relationship than any sales pitch ever will.

LAC’s Flatbed Trucking Network

LAC coordinates tailored FTL, LTL, and Flatbed & Heavy Haul solutions built on 25+ years of carrier relationships across Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Rather than booking a standard flatbed and hoping it fits, that network sources equipment ranging from standard flatbeds to specialized trailers like step decks and RGNs, matched to your freight’s actual dimensions before pickup. Shippers get one partner instead of juggling several separate flatbed carriers for different equipment needs.

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What to Prepare Before Booking

Having exact freight dimensions, weight, loading method, and any permit or escort needs ready before reaching out speeds up quoting considerably and reduces back-and-forth once a request is submitted. That information helps a carrier confirm the right equipment on the first try, rather than adjusting the trailer type after booking once true dimensions surface at pickup. Freight exceeding standard height or weight limits may also need permits, so flagging that upfront avoids delays once a shipment is scheduled.

Why Shippers Choose LAC

Flatbed freight rewards a partner whose carrier network already knows the equipment. LAC’s bicultural, bilingual team closes the language and local-practice gaps that slow other providers down, especially when a trailer type needs sourcing on short notice. Its carriers hold memberships with groups like the ATA, CTA, and CANACAR, follow CVSA inspection standards across all three countries, and include CTPAT-certified carriers for faster border processing. Shippers get a partner who understands both the equipment and the corridor.

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Common Flatbed Shipping Challenges

Common flatbed shipping challenges include:

Tight carrier capacity during peak seasons
Weather exposure of uncovered freight
Proper load securement for cargo on an open deck without walls
Capacity tightening during year-end surges and certain agricultural seasons, when baled hay and straw, cotton, and farm equipment such as tractors and combines compete for open-deck trailers
Cross-border capacity constraints, since direct (no-transload) service requires the same trailer to work on both sides of the border

Cross-border flatbed moves face this last constraint most directly. Direct service requires one carrier and its cross-border counterpart to run the full route with the same trailer, so that trailer must be available and compatible on both sides of the border, which tightens capacity. Transloading removes that constraint: a Mexican flatbed carrier and a U.S. flatbed carrier can be booked independently, with the freight handed off at the border. An experienced carrier network reduces these risks through established relationships and equipment variety that can flex when one option isn’t available.

Flatbed Equipment Types Overview

Equipment	What it adds	Best for
Standard flatbed	Open deck with side, top, or rear loading	Freight within standard height and weight limits
Step deck	Lower rear deck for extra height clearance	Moderately tall freight
Double drop	Lowers the deck between the gooseneck and rear axles	Tall freight needing more clearance than a step deck
RGN	Detachable gooseneck for drive-on loading	Tall, self-propelled or wheeled/tracked equipment
Conestoga	A frame-supported tarp that protects freight without touching it, unlike tarping a standard flatbed	Weather-sensitive or high-value cargo still needing open-deck access

Matching the right equipment to the load is one of the biggest factors in a smooth, on-time flatbed shipment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is flatbed trucking used for?

Flatbed trucking handles cargo too wide, tall, or heavy for enclosed trailers, including steel, lumber, machinery, and construction equipment that needs open-deck loading access from the side or top. That open design allows loading from the side, top, or rear, which enclosed dry vans and standard trailers can’t accommodate for oversized or irregularly shaped freight. Flatbed trucking companies typically operate a mix of standard and specialized equipment to cover this range of freight types and heights.

What size loads can a flatbed carry?

Standard flatbeds typically run 48 to 53 feet long, 8.5 feet wide, and have a weight limit of around 48,000 to 52,000 pounds, depending on the specific trailer and route conditions. Larger or heavier loads move on specialized equipment instead, such as a step deck, RGN, or lowboy, which offer different clearance and capacity trade-offs for taller or heavier freight. Confirming exact dimensions with your flatbed carrier before booking helps avoid mismatched equipment on pickup day.

Is a permit required for flatbed freight?

Standard flatbed loads within legal dimension and weight limits don’t need special permits and move like any other commercial freight shipment across state lines without added paperwork or delay. Freight exceeding those limits requires state-specific oversize permits and sometimes escort vehicles, handled separately from routine flatbed shipping and confirmed well ahead of dispatch. Sharing accurate dimensions and weight with your carrier early on helps determine whether permits apply before the shipment is scheduled and booked.

How is flatbed freight secured during transit?

Flatbed freight is typically secured with chains, straps, and edge protection appropriate to the cargo type and weight, following standard load-securement practices used across the trucking industry. Securement methods vary somewhat depending on whether the freight is palletized, coiled, or irregularly shaped, since each requires a different combination of tie-down points and edge guards. Reputable flatbed shipping companies train drivers specifically on these securement standards, since proper securement is one of the most important steps in preventing shifting or damage in transit.

Can one flatbed carrier handle multiple equipment types?

Many flatbed trucking companies coordinate access to multiple equipment types, such as step decks and RGNs, through their broader carrier network rather than owning every trailer type directly themselves. That network approach lets a single point of contact match the right equipment to each shipment without the shipper needing to manage separate carriers for different trailer needs on different routes and corridors. It also tends to simplify quoting when freight requirements shift between shipments over time.