Haul ticket disputes: what records settle a disagreement about the count

A load count dispute usually starts with one sentence: "We never got that many." The hauler says they delivered it, the customer says they did not receive it, and the person in the middle has a spreadsheet and a feeling. A dispute like that is settled by paper, not memory, and the paper has to exist before anyone argues.

This is about the records that hold up when a hauler or customer questions a count, and how to keep them as part of ordinary work so you are never rebuilding them under pressure.

What decides a count

In most disputes the strongest evidence is the document made at the scale or the dump, at the time of the load. A printed scale ticket with its number, date, weight or count, and the truck beats any later estimate. A photo of that paper, taken when it was handed over, is almost as good, because it shows the record existed at the time.

Your own log comes next. A list of loads written down the same day, with the same ticket numbers, shows you were tracking the work as it happened. A log written a month later from memory shows much less.

Keep the paper and the photo together

A ticket is worth most when it is linked to the job, the truck and the date. In TrackOver, a haul ticket records the ticket number, date, material, quantity and unit, hauler, truck, where the load came from and where it went, and a photo of the paper. Tons, cubic yards and loads are kept as separate units, so a total never mixes them.

Without software, keep the same fields in a spreadsheet and file each photo under the job name and date. The principle is the same: every load has its own record, and the record carries the number the scale printed.

Check for the two errors behind most disputes

A ticket number on two jobs. If the same scale ticket is logged against two jobs, one customer pays for stone the other received, and it is easy to miss when each job is reviewed alone. TrackOver checks tickets across all jobs and warns when a ticket number shows up more than once, so you can fix it before either invoice goes out.

A load billed twice, or never billed. Both look like honest mistakes on one invoice and like a problem on two. Mark loads as billed when they go onto an invoice, and check the unbilled loads before you close a job.

When the hauler's statement disagrees

The hauler sends a statement with a line per load, and it does not match yours. Do not split the difference, and do not pay the whole thing to end the call. Go line by line:

• Lines on the statement with no logged load. Ask for the paper for each one.
• Loads you logged that are not on the statement. They may be on the next one, or billed elsewhere.
• Matched lines where the quantity, date or amount differs. Compare each one with the paper, not with what you remember.
• A ticket that appears twice on the statement. Ask for a corrected statement before you pay that line.

TrackOver can check a hauler's statement against your logged loads, sorting the lines into matched, matched with a difference, not logged, billed twice, and logged but not on the bill. It does not decide who is right. It gives you the list of questions to ask, which is most of the work.

When a customer questions a count

A customer who disputes a count is usually asking one of two things: did the material arrive, and is the price right? Show them the ticket numbers, dates and photos of the paper for every load on their invoice. If the count is by the ton, the scale ticket is the answer. If it is by the truckload, show the truck and date for each one. Do not send a total without the list behind it.

If the contract caps the quantity or sets the unit, bill to that, not to the number you would like. The contract decides the bill, not the trucking habit.

How long to keep the records

Keep tickets, photos and logs at least as long as you keep the job and the invoice. Disputes often surface late, when a customer or hauler goes back through their own records. Ask your accountant how long your business should keep them, since that depends on your state and your records rules.

Related reading

For the everyday process of keeping tickets, see our article on haul tickets. For pricing the trucking itself, see pricing trucking and haul-off.

Common questions

What is the best evidence in a load count dispute? The scale or dump ticket printed at the time of the load, with its number and date. A photo of that ticket, taken when it was handed over, is the next best thing.

Can I use a load count without a scale ticket? Sometimes, if everyone agreed in advance to count by the truck. Write down what a load means and which truck it was, so the agreement is on paper before the work starts.

Should I pay the disputed amount to close it out? Not without seeing the paper. Pay the lines that match, and hold the rest until you have the tickets or a corrected statement.