The Pinch Points
Why Hotshot Operators Come to Us Instead of Their Bank
Hotshot operators front the rig, the authority, and the insurance before freight stabilizes — and a new authority has no time-in-business a bank will read. Our lenders read your load deposits. Sound familiar?
Bigger Truck, $2/Mile Loads
You're running a Ram 5500 with a 40-foot gooseneck. A $45K medium-duty truck would let you take heavier loads at $2/mile instead of $1.50. The truck is available now but your bank needs 8 weeks.
Insurance Jumped 75%, Due in 15 Days
Your commercial auto insurance renewal jumped from $8K to $14K. It's due in 15 days and you just paid for new tires and a DOT inspection. Cash is tight.
Oilfield Lane, Second Rig in 30 Days
An oilfield client wants you to dedicate 2 trucks to their operation — guaranteed $18K/week. You need a second truck and trailer ($70K total) within 30 days.
Blown Turbo, 48-Hour Dispatch
You blew a turbo on your F-550 hauling pipe to a drill site — $6,800 repair and the oilfield dispatch won't hold your loads past 48 hours. The nearest shop that works on medium-duty trucks wants payment upfront.
Snapped Axle, Four Loads Parked
Your gooseneck trailer axle snapped under a 16,000 lb load. New axle and alignment is $5,200 and you've got 4 loads booked this week at $1,800 each. Every day parked is $3,600 in lost revenue you won't get back.
One Truck, No Bench
Hotshot rates are good until your one truck is in the shop — then the revenue stops cold while the payment doesn't. A single-rig operation has no bench.
What an operator said
“Bank wanted two years before they'd talk. Got the second dually funded on six months of load deposits and doubled what I could book.”
Cole S. · Hotshot Operator · Midland, TX
Start Here
See Your Range in 60 Seconds
No credit check, no documents to start, and an estimated funding range on the spot. No one contacts you until you’re ready to move forward.
What Happens When You Start
Estimate Your Capital Range
Slide to your annual gross revenue. We size capital off your top line — not your credit score.
Estimated Capital Range
A conservative range based on 10-15% of annual revenue — many businesses qualify for more with strong receivables or assets behind them. Lenders return real term sheets once they see your file.
60 seconds · No obligation · Estimate only
Built for the Trade
What We Fund for Hotshot Operators
Fund the Dually and Gooseneck, Section 179
Pair the 1-ton dually and 40-ft gooseneck on a single Section 179 buy, and the deduction outweighs the cash you put in.
Cover Authority and Startup Fuel
A working-capital line covers fuel and authority/insurance costs in the first months before freight stabilizes.
Advance on Hotshot Loads
Draw against open hotshot loads through an A/R line rather than sitting on broker net terms with no cushion.
Reserve for a Single Rig
A maintenance reserve line keeps a single rig running so a breakdown isn't a revenue stop.
Owner-Operator Fuel & Cash Line
A drawable fuel and operating line sized for a single-rig cash flow — approved on load history so a slow week never stalls the rig.
Fund the Second Truck
A term structure funds the second truck — the move from owner-operator to a two-rig hotshot bench.
Match Your Situation
The Cash-Flow Gaps We Fund for Hotshot Operators
Match your situation to the structure. Every one of these funds on your revenue, not a perfect credit file.
| What It Looks Like | Funding Solution | Amount | Speed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medium-duty truck upgrade | A 1-ton dually or medium-duty rig takes heavier loads at better per-mile rates than a bumper-pull setup. | Equipment Financing | $75K–$150K | 3–7 days |
| Authority and insurance startup | A new operating authority means commercial insurance and compliance costs due before freight stabilizes. | Working Capital | $75K–$150K | 1–3 days |
| Gooseneck trailer acquisition | Owning a 40-ft commercial gooseneck instead of leasing adds capacity and stops the monthly bleed. | Equipment Financing | $75K–$120K | 3–7 days |
| Single-rig breakdown reserve | A turbo or axle failure parks a one-truck operation entirely — a reserve keeps it earning. | Working Capital | $75K–$150K | 1–3 days |
| Second-truck expansion | An oilfield or dedicated lane justifies a second rig to move from one truck to a two-rig bench. | Equipment Financing | $75K–$200K | 3–7 days |
The Products
How Hotshot Financing Is Structured
Most hotshot files fund between $75K and $5M+, structured to the rig, the authority, or the second truck in front of you. Larger lines available when revenue, cash flow, and story qualify.
| Amount | Term | Best For | Funding Speed | Typical Structure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 2yr–10yr | Dually, gooseneck, second-rig packages | 3–7 days | Equipment serves as collateral |
| Working Capital | $75K–$5M+ | 6mo–10yr | Authority, insurance, startup fuel, payroll | 1–3 days | Often unsecured, daily/weekly ACH |
| Invoice Factoring | $75K–$5M+ | Per invoice | Hotshot load net-30 receivables | 1–2 days | Invoices secure the line, no PG typically |
| Business LOC | $75K–$5M+ | Revolving | Fuel, tires, and load-by-load float | 1–5 days | Unsecured line, no PG by default |
Tax Strategy
Section 179 on a Hotshot Rig — Dually and Gooseneck — Worked
If last year was strong and you’re about to write a check to the IRS — stop. Acquire qualifying equipment with as little as 10% down, finance the rest, and write off the full purchase price in year one. Section 179 covers it up to the annual cap; 100% bonus depreciation — made permanent in 2025, with no cap and no income limit — carries the rest.
At the top bracket, that first-year deduction can return meaningful tax savings — and for an established business with strong cash flow, it’s the difference between writing a check to the IRS and putting the same money into your own equipment. Your CPA models the exact numbers for your bracket and structure.
Worked scenario · top bracket · illustrative
You financed the machine and put down a fraction of its price — but you deduct the full price in year one. The write-off is bigger than your down payment, and the equipment keeps working the whole time.
Scales with your numbers
Illustrative only. Actual savings depend on your tax bracket, entity type, state conformity, and CPA guidance. Section 179 and bonus depreciation are elections your CPA makes for your situation; above the Section 179 cap, 100% bonus depreciation carries the balance.
Terms reflect credit, revenue, time in business, and each lender. Every file is unique — see what the desk structures for yours in the 60-second qualifier.
Bobby’s Take
“Hotshot lives and dies on the second truck — one rig in the shop and the revenue stops while the note doesn't. Fund the dually and gooseneck on your load history, not your time in business. §179 gives you more write-off than the down; your CPA confirms the number.”
Bobby Friel · Founder · 20+ years in banking and finance
How It Works
From Application to Funded
One application, 70+ lenders competing, a dedicated specialist, and most files funded in days.
60-second estimate
Enter your numbers — no credit check, no documents. You see an estimated funding range on the spot.
A specialist is assigned
A real funding specialist — not an algorithm — reviews your file, usually within 24 hours.
70+ lenders compete
Your application goes to the marketplace. Competing offers typically land 24–48 hours later.
You pick the offer
Compare structures and terms with your advisor. No obligation until you choose to sign.
Funded in days
From same-day working capital to a multi-piece stack, most files fund in days — not the bank’s 60–90.
Underwriting
What Underwriting Looks At
Funding here leads with what your business actually does — your revenue and cash flow. The specialist desk reads the real picture from your statements, then matches it to the lenders most likely to fund it.
How you’re evaluated
Revenue-first
sized off your top line, not just your balance sheet.
Cash-flow driven
your bank statements show how the business really runs.
Bank-statement underwriting
even a down year is read off 4 months of statements.
Story-driven
a big new contract, a seasonal swing, a turnaround in progress: context the raw numbers miss counts too.
What to have ready
↳Had a loss year? It’s read off the bank statements — 4 months, not 6.
Start fast, finish complete
The operators who fund quickest come to the specialist review with these ready — but you don’t need all of it to start. Your signed application and bank statements are what unblock the review; the rest can follow as trailing docs. Real term sheets come once the lenders can see a true business overview, so the move is simple: get the application and statements in right away, and don’t let a missing tax return hold up your term sheets.
Credit, straight
Qualification
Who Gets Funded — and Who’s Not Ready Yet
A straight read saves everyone time — here’s the line between a hotshot file that funds and one that isn’t ready yet.
↳Time in business is a factor, not a gate — newer crews with strong revenue still qualify.
Not ready yet isn’t a no — it’s a checklist. Most of it is fixable in a quarter or two, and your advisor will tell you straight which gaps to fix before a file goes in.
The Operator's Guide
Hotshot Trucking Financing
Funding a Rig the Bank Treats Like a Pickup
A 1-ton dually with a 40-ft gooseneck isn't a Class 8 semi and isn't a consumer truck — and a bank underwrites it like one or the other, usually to a no. Hotshot operators scale on load history and deposits, not the years-in-business a new authority can't show. Our lenders read your load board revenue and fund the rig, the authority costs, and the second truck on that, so a good lane doesn't get away while a bank makes up its mind.
One Application, 70+ Lenders
A $70K truck-and-trailer package for a dedicated oilfield lane, a $14K insurance renewal due in 15 days, or an emergency turbo repair before dispatch drops you — we connect you with 70+ lenders who fund hotshot operators every week. Equipment financing, working capital, A/R, and lines of credit — $75K to $5M+, on your revenue. One application, soft-pull review to start.
Common Questions
Hotshot Financing — Questions, Answered
Yes — hotshot operators with a newer authority qualify on revenue and load history rather than years in business; structures run $75K–$5M+.
Yes. Both can be funded under one equipment structure with the rig as collateral, sized on your revenue and load history.
Yes — a term structure funds the move from one rig to two, sized on load history and deposits, $75K–$5M+.
No. Soft credit pull only — zero FICO impact.
A working-capital or reserve line covers the gap, and a second rig builds a bench so a single breakdown isn't a revenue stop; soft-pull review to start.
Recommended Funding
The Products That Fit Hotshot Work
Equipment Financing →
Finance the dually, gooseneck, and second rig — the equipment is the collateral.
Working Capital Loans →
Cover authority, insurance, and startup fuel before freight stabilizes.
Invoice Factoring →
Convert hotshot load invoices to same-day cash instead of waiting on broker terms.
Business Line of Credit →
Draw for fuel and tires load by load, repay from settlements.