Cost & quotes
Fuel Surcharge Freight: How Diesel Shows Up on the Invoice
Fuel surcharge freight follows diesel benchmarks and applies differently on LTL versus FTL. Ask for the table, not a buried all-in number.
Updated 2026-08-20 · fuel surcharge freight
Fuel surcharge freight is the line that moves when pump prices move. It is not a penalty and it is not optional on most tenders. Carriers recover diesel cost through a published table—often tied to a U.S. Department of Energy diesel average—applied as a percentage of linehaul or as cents per mile. If a quote hides it, you do not know what you bought.
COL Freight Solutions shows fuel logic on FTL and LTL quotes across North America. Licensed property broker, USDOT 4427559, MC-1741651. When you request a quote, ask us to separate linehaul from fuel surcharge freight so finance can forecast. 561-880-9808 · shipping@colfreightsolutions.com.
How fuel surcharge freight is typically applied
FTL often uses a cents-per-mile or a percentage of the truck price, updated weekly with the diesel index. LTL more often uses a percentage of the discounted linehaul, with its own table. Two carriers can post different FSC percentages in the same week because they adopted different base points or update calendars.
“Fuel included” only means the desk rolled the current table into one number. It does not freeze diesel until the end of the year. Ask whether a pickup next month will be restated if the index jumps.
What FSC does not cover
Detention, liftgate, extra stops, and border dwell are not fuel. Neither is a reclass. Bundling everything as “fuel” is how a surcharge gets a bad reputation it does not deserve. Keep the lines separate so you can manage the ones you actually control.
Forecasting without pretending diesel is flat
For budgets, hold linehaul assumptions still and let fuel float with the index. For a single tender, the FSC in effect on the ship date usually governs. If you need a firm all-in for a project move, say so; the desk may lock a short validity window rather than a season-long promise.
- Ask which diesel index and which table the quote uses.
- Ask if LTL FSC applies to accessorials or only to linehaul.
- Do not compare a fuel-included bid to a fuel-extra bid without restating.
Border miles and the quote
Cross-border legs still burn diesel. Idle at the crossing burns it without adding miles, which is one reason dwell is its own operational cost. We will not pretend FSC captures waiting at the bridge.
Send the lane and ship date for a quote with fuel stated. Recurring shippers can review the Transportation Cost Recovery Program™ after the rate stack is transparent. Offices in Saint Petersburg, FL and Los Gatos, CA.
