DAT SPECIAL REPORT
3rd DAT Carrier Benchmark Survey
Q1 2013
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DAT SPECIAL REPORT 2
DAT Carrier Benchmark Survey
Among the 514 trucking companies who took our online survey, most respondents
fell into one of two groups: (1) for-hire carriers with small fleets (an average of
7.8 power units and 16 trailers, in a range from 2 to more than 500) and (2)
owner-operators with a single truck that the owner drove under his own authority. A
smaller number of respondents identified themselves as private fleets or asset-based
brokers. Because those two groups operate under a different business model, their
answers are not included in this report.
Carriers’ Costs Rise Faster than Rates
Throughout much of 2012, we noted that carriers’ costs were rising faster than
their rates, and that outlook was confirmed. Year-over-year comparisons illustrate
a point that has been made by a number of trucking industry analysts in 2012. To
quote Donald Broughton of Avondale Partners, for example: “…the per-mile costs of
operating a truckload carrier are going up at a pace twice that of the pricing power
currently being achieved.” In short, carriers’ costs are rising twice as fast as their
revenues.
Key Results Slip to 2010 Levels
Key performance indicators declined in 2012 for all fleets surveyed, so that results
were more similar to those reported in 2010 than in 2011.
Monthly Profits Exceeded
$3,000 Per Truck
Major KPIs By Year For-Hire Carriers
Average Revenue per Truck
The small, for-hire fleets and
owner-operators yielded gross
profits of more than $3,000 per
truck per month in 2012.
For-Hire Carriers
Avg. % Of Miles
Driven Empty
More Empty Miles,
Shorter Hauls

Avg. Length Of
Haul, One Way
Empty miles increased in
2012, when compared with
survey results in the previous
year. Both for-hire carriers
and owner-operators saw
empty miles increase to
2010 levels.
11.6%
Owner-Operator
12.5%
15.8%
14.9%
10.2%
9.9%
920
820
866
852
878
754
Avg. Total Miles Per
Truck, Per Month 9,264
10,440
9,734
9,321
8,236
Avg. Rate Per Loaded
Mile, Including Fuel
Surcharges (US$)
$2.10
$2.05
$2.00
$18,429
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$17,684
$16,168
$14,986
2010
$1.95
$1.75
$1.73
Avg. Revenue Per Truck
$14,431
$12,060
2011
8,986
2012
2010
2011
2012
19%
For-hire carriers
21%
Owner-operator
Due to their low overhead,
owner-operators achieved higher
gross margins than for-hire
carriers, on a per-truck basis,
before taxes and depreciation.
DAT SPECIAL REPORT 3

Length of haul declined, and the change was greater for the for-hire carriers
(-11%) than for the owner-operators (-4.6%). A shorter haul usually correlates
with higher rates, but that was not the case in 2012.

Total miles per truck declined slightly, on average. For-hire carriers with
multiple trucks and drivers had more flexibility to re-position assets, so they
logged 8.3% more miles than owner-operators. The owner-operators typically had
one truck and drove it themselves, so the truck was parked whenever the driver
took a break for home visits or hours-of-service regulations.

Rates per loaded mile appeared to dip for both groups, but that result was not
significantly different from 2011. For-hire carriers and owner-operators reported
higher rates in both 2012 and 2011 than they did in 2010. According to DAT
RateViewTM, average contract rates rose 2.9% in 2012, while spot market
rates declined 1.1% nationwide, not including the fuel surcharge.

Monthly revenue per truck dropped, compared to the previous year, due to a
combination of the decline in total miles and the increase in miles driven empty.
Top 3 Profit Drivers: Rates, Fuel Efficiency and Asset Utilization
Profitability was largely a factor of the rate per mile for both for-hire carriers and
owner-operators. In second place, the most significant factor for the for-hire fleets
was fuel efficiency. Owner-operators improved profitability most by getting a higher
rate and reducing the
percentage of miles
Higher Rates Yield Best Return
driven empty.
Avg. P rofit/Los s
Rates per loaded mile
(bottom) were the
biggest factor in
profitability for small,
for-hire fleets as well
as owner-operators.
After securing a higher
rate, for-hire carriers
improved profits most
when they boosted fuel
efficiency (center.)
For owner-operators,
reducing empty miles
(top) was the secondmost important factor
in determining
profitability.
F or-hire carrier
< $1.75
Avg. R evenue per T ruck
($1K)
$14K
$1.75 - $2.00
$3K
$17K
> $2.00
O wner-operator
$8K
< $1.75
$1K
$1.75 - $2.00
$12K
$3K
> $2.00
$16K
$5K
Improving F
$18K
y Boosts Fleet Revenue
Avg. P rofit/Los s
<5.50
F or-hire carrier
$20K
Avg. R evenue per T ruck
($2K)
$16K
$5K
5.50-5.99
6.00-6.49
$16K
$3K
$17K
6.50+
$7K
$17K
Reducing Empty Miles Drives O-O P
Avg. P rofit/Los s
O wner-operator
0% -5%
5.1% -10%
$4K
11% -20%
21+%
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Avg. R evenue per T ruck
$4K
$3K
$1K
$20K
$16K
$14K
$11K
DAT SPECIAL REPORT 4
Load Board is the Primary Source of Freight
For-Hire Carrier
Owner-Operator
Load Boards
37.1%
45.1%
Freightbrokers or 3PLs
28.2%
28.1%
Contracts With Shippers
31.1%
22.8%
2012 Key Performance
Indicators, by Fleet Type
Monthly Revenue Per Truck
$16,527 for-hire carrier
$14,431 owner-operator
All the survey respondents used load boards, which were the primary source of
freight for both for-hire carriers (37%) and owner-operators (45%). Freight
brokers and 3PLs provided 28% of the loads to both groups directly. Shippers
provided 31% of loads to for-hire carriers while only 23% of owner-operators’
freight came from shipper contracts.
Load Boards Improve Utilization for Van Fleets
Increased use of DAT Load Boards led to an improvement in asset utilization, especially for fleets that included more than 50% van trailers. The relationship between
load board use and empty miles was not significant for reefer or flatbed carriers.
Owner-Operators Achieved Higher Margins
Due to their low overhead, owner-operators achieved 21% gross margins
while for-hire carriers’ margins were lower at 19%, on a per-truck basis. The
owner-operators had an average of 1.2 power units, and gross profit of $3,046
monthly per truck, for a 21% gross margin. For-hire carriers made an average of
$3,892 per month for each of their trucks, across an average of 7.8 trucks, per fleet.
Their total gross profit was $26,559 per month, representing a 19% margin, before
taxes and depreciation.
Total Rate Per Loaded Mile
$2.00 for-hire carrier
$1.95 owner-operator
Percent of Miles Driven Empty
12.5% for-hire carrier
15.8% owner-operator
Total Monthly Miles per Truck
9,734 for-hire carrier
8,986 owner-operator
Length of Haul, One-Way (Miles)
754 for-hire carrier
878 owner-operator
Fuel Mileage per Gallon (MPG)
6.4 for-hire carrier
6.0 owner-operator
Monthly Gross Profit Per Truck
$3,154 for-hire carrier
$3,046 owner-operator
Gross Profit Margin, Before Taxes
19% for-hire carrier
21% owner-operator
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DAT SPECIAL REPORT 5
Financial Comparisons: For-Hire Carriers and Owner-Operators
Monthly Costs, Revenues and Profits Per Truck*
Direct Costs
For-hire carrier
Owner-operator
Fuel
$6,783
$6,048
Driver pay
$1,959
$1,165
License/Reg fees
$1,376
$1,531
Lease (power unit)
$539
$456
Truck Maintenance
$338
$433
Truck Tire Costs
$263
$286
Lease (trailer)
$186
$131
For-hire carrier
Owner-operator
$1,277
$285
Rent or mortgage payment
$131
$175
Insurance per truck
$255
$452
Cell phone
$122
$275
Office phone, fax and internet
$47
$60
Utilities, including electricity and water
$27
$37
Other overhead
$70
$52
For-hire carrier
Owner-operator
$16,527
$14,431
$3,154
$3,046
19%
21%
Overhead Costs
Non-driver payroll and benefits
Key Performance Indicators
Revenue per Truck
Pre-Tax Profit
Pre-Tax Profit Margin
* For each survey respondent, direct costs per mile were multiplied by total miles driven, overhead was divided
by total miles and number of trucks, and revenues were multiplied by loaded miles. The results were averaged
for each of the fleet types.
For-Hire Fleets Made More Money
For-hire carriers received a higher average rate per mile, and they achieved better
fuel efficiency and asset utilization than the owner-operators. Due to higher
operating costs, however, for-hire carriers had lower gross profit margins than
owner-operators. The for-hire carriers, with an average of 7.8 power units, had
additional costs associated with higher total miles driven per truck, as well as
indirect expenses, including offices, other facilities and non-driver payroll.
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DAT SPECIAL REPORT 6
2013 Goals: Raise Prices, Reduce Costs
Improving revenue while cutting costs were the top two goals expressed by carriers,
earning above 2.5 on a scale of 0 to 3, where 0 meant ‘not important’ and 3 meant
‘very important’. The third place option was “bring in new business.” All three goals
were shared by owner-operators and for-hire carriers. Rounding out their top five
goals, for-hire carriers emphasized driver retention and adding power units or trailers,
while owner-operators planned to add or improve technology in the cab and in the
office.
2013 Priorities
Shared by carriers and
owner-operators
1.Improve Revenue Per Mile
2.Reduce Costs
3.Bring In New Business
2013 Priorities - rated on a scale of 0 to 3
For-Hire Carrier
Owner-Operator
Improve revenue per mile
2.8
2.7
Reduce costs
2.5
2.4
Bring in new business
2.2
2.1
Add or improve office technology
1.8
1.7
Add power units or trailers
2.0
1.5
Improve driver retention
2.1
1.3
Recruit and train new drivers
1.8
1.3
Add or improve in-cab technology
1.6
1.7
2013 Challenges: Fuel, Rules and Maintenance
The cost of fuel was seen as the biggest challenge facing fleets and owner-operators
in 2013, followed by regulatory compliance and equipment maintenance. Insurance,
financing and credit were among the other top concerns shared by both groups.
Cost of fuel is biggest concern
2013 Challenges - rated on a scale of 0 to 3
For-Hire Carrier
Owner-Operator
Fuel cost
2.7
2.8
CSA, HOS and other safety regulations
2.3
2.3
Equipment maintenance
2.3
2.2
Insurance
2.2
2.1
CARB and other environmental regulations
2.0
1.9
Financing and credit
2.1
1.8
Driver recruitment and training
1.9
1.3
Driver retention
1.9
1.3
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2013 Challenges
1.Fuel Costs
2.Safety Regulations
3.Equipment Maintenance
DAT SPECIAL REPORT 7
Survey Respondents: 51% For-Hire, 34% Owner-Operator
Most respondents to the annual DAT Carrier Benchmark Survey in the past three years
have been owner-operators (blue) or for-hire carriers (orange). Among the owner-operators surveyed this year, 66% own a single truck (shown on the second chart below)
and drive it under their own authority. This survey report separates for-hire carriers
from owner-operators, for purposes of comparison, and omits answers from private
fleets and asset-based brokers.
51.3% For-hire carrier
1% Other
8.4% Carrier-broker
4% Private fleet
34.4% Owner-operator
66% One truck with DOT authority
16% One truck, leased
13% Multiple trucks, with authority
2% Leased on, multiple trucks,
drivers are employees of O-O
2% Other business structure
1% Leased on, multiple trucks,
drivers are not employees
How We Surveyed
The Third Annual DAT Carrier Benchmark Survey drew 514 responses from DAT
customers, including carriers, owner-operators, private fleets and asset-based
brokers. They filled out an online questionnaire, anonymously providing detailed
information about their fleet operations. This report is based on responses of the
for-hire carriers and owner-operators only. The margin of error is plus or minus
6.1% for the for-hire carriers and 7.7% for owner-operators.
Call 1.800.547.5417
DAT.com
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