Average detention pay per hour: what truckers get paid, and what to ask for

Average detention pay per hour

The medians come from ATRI's 2024 study of the detention fees carriers charged in 2023. ATRI also found the fees barely moved: a median rise of 3% from 2018 to 2023, while the hourly cost of running a truck rose 21.4%.

There is no federal detention rate. You can bill whatever your rate confirmation or carrier agreement says, and nothing it doesn't. Free time is usually 2 hours; when the clock starts is a separate question, covered in when detention starts.

What owner-operators actually collect

The OOIDA Foundation's 2023 Detention Time Survey asked members what they get paid:

• Owner-operators with their own authority who collect detention averaged $53.69 an hour (median $50).
• Leased-on owner-operators averaged $45.56, and company drivers $37.70.
• Asked what a fair rate would be, members put the median at $75 an hour (the average answer was $80.33, the most common $100).
• 17% of members said they collect no detention pay at all; among owner-operators with their own authority, 19%.

What published carrier terms pay

A few companies publish their detention terms for carriers. These are their numbers, quoted as examples; yours are on your rate con.

• J.B. Hunt (Carrier 360, December 2020): $50 an hour with automated updates, $40 recorded manually, starting 2 hours after the arrival check call, in 15-minute steps, up to 5 hours.
• Campbell's (2024): $1 a minute after the first 2 hours past the appointment, up to $360 per stop, and only when the truck arrives on time.
• FreightWaves (May 2025) puts the usual rate written into rate cons at $30 to $75 an hour.

Worked example: a shipper makes you wait 5 hours

Say the rate con gives 2 hours free, then $75 an hour, with the clock starting at the appointment if you are on time.

• Time at the dock, appointment to departure: 5 hours
• Free time: 2 hours
• Billable: 5 − 2 = 3 hours
• Amount: 3 × $75 = $225

At the $50 truckload median, the same stop pays $150. If the shipper keeps you 5 hours past free time (7 hours on site), that's 5 × $75 = $375. Change the rate or free time only when your rate con says so. Run your own times: detention pay calculator.

The contract controls, not the "industry average"

AP will not pay "what drivers usually get." They pay the free time, rate, increments and caps printed on the confirmation. Billing $100/h when the rate con says $50/h is a rate-con mismatch denial. Billing 1 hour free when the rate con says 2 is the same problem. Fix path: why claims get denied.

On a brokered load, the broker on the rate con is who pays, not the shipper or receiver that made you wait. Put that party on the detention invoice.

Caps, increments and per-stop limits

Some rate cons bill in 15- or 30-minute increments after free time. Others cap detention per stop or per day: J.B. Hunt's published terms stop at 5 hours, and Campbell's at $360 per stop. Read those lines before you accept. A $75/h rate with a $150 cap is not the same as open-ended $75/h. Put the cap math on the invoice so AP doesn't invent a different reading.

How to negotiate detention pay with brokers

Once you are at the dock, you are stuck with the written terms. Negotiate when you book:

1. Get detention on the rate con: free time, the hourly rate, when the clock starts, the notice rule, the proof required and the billing deadline.
2. Use real numbers. Median fees run $50 to $80 an hour depending on the freight (ATRI), and $75 is the median rate OOIDA members call fair. Asking for $75 is asking for a number you can back up.
3. Look at free time, not just the rate. On a 5-hour wait, 1 hour free at $50 pays $200; 2 hours free at $75 pays $225.
4. Price the wait or pass. If the dock is known for five-hour waits and the rate con is silent on detention, build the wait into the linehaul or turn the load down.
5. Check the broker's record. The Broker Pay Score in the GetDockPay app shows how often a broker pays the detention claims drivers file through it.

GetDockPay does the free-time math from your Arrived/Departed stamps and builds the PDF at the hourly rate you set in Profile, Set Your Rate (match it to the rate con); it never invents a higher rate. With Pro, a running total shows what's billable every hour after your free time runs out.

Charged vs paid: why the rate isn't the whole story

A clean $75/h clause doesn't guarantee a clean deposit. ATRI found carriers bill detention only 75% of the time, and only 55% of those invoices get paid. In all, carriers were paid for 36% to 46% of detention incidents, depending on the type of freight.

So treat the rate and the collection as two jobs. Negotiate free time and the rate before you accept. Then bill the same day with a separate detention invoice, proof attached, and follow up on day 3, 7 and 14 if the broker goes quiet. Steps: how to get paid for detention time. If the bill goes unanswered: broker not paying detention?

FAQ

How much is detention pay per hour?

Whatever your rate con says. ATRI's medians for 2023 were $50 an hour for truckload, $60 for refrigerated and $80 for specialized freight.

What are the best detention pay rates for owner-operators?

Above the median, and in writing. Owner-operators with their own authority collected $53.69 an hour on average (OOIDA Foundation, 2023), and members called $75 fair. Specialized freight had the highest median, $80 (ATRI).

Is $75 an hour a normal detention rate?

It is above the truckload median ($50) and below specialized ($80), and it is the median rate OOIDA members call fair. Ask for it when you book; bill what the rate con says.

How do you calculate detention pay?

(Hours at the dock − free time) × rate. Five hours with 2 free at $75 an hour: (5 − 2) × $75 = $225.

Can I charge more if the wait was miserable?

Only if the contract allows it. Emotion doesn't amend the rate con. Negotiate next time, before you accept.