The Pinch Points
Why Reefer Carriers Come to Us Instead of Their Bank
Reefer carriers front the rig, the diesel, and the unit repairs months before a produce broker pays net-45. Banks see thin margins; our lenders read the lanes. Sound familiar?
Reefer Down, $60K Load Warming
Your reefer unit failed mid-haul with $60K in perishable pharmaceuticals. Roadside repair is $6K and the shipper is threatening a claim. You need the repair funded today.
Grocery Lane, Second Trailer in Three Weeks
You landed a dedicated reefer lane for a grocery chain — $8K/week guaranteed. But they require a second reefer trailer. A used unit is $45K and the broker starts loads in 3 weeks.
Dead APU, $300/Day in Diesel
Your APU died in July. Running the main engine for cooling costs $300/day extra in fuel. A new APU is $12K installed but saves $200/day. You need it financed this week.
Produce Contract, Trailer Road-Ready in Three Weeks
A produce distributor offered you a seasonal contract — 30 loads/month at $4,800 each from April through October. You need an $85K reefer trailer and $6K in pre-trip inspections and certs before the first load. Revenue will hit $144K/month but the trailer has to be road-ready in 3 weeks.
Compressor Seized, Cargo on the Clock
Your reefer unit's compressor seized hauling $40K in frozen seafood. Emergency roadside repair is $8,500 and the cargo has 6 hours before it's a total loss. The repair shop wants payment before they start.
One Failure, Billed Three Ways
A reefer unit failure mid-haul isn't a repair bill — it's a spoiled load, a claim, and a customer who reroutes next week's freight to someone else. The cost shows up three places at once.
What an operator said
“Reefer unit died in July with a full load of produce. The line covered the rebuild same week — kept the contract.”
Marcus T. · Reefer Carrier · Fresno, CA
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 Reefer Carriers
Fund the Reefer Rig, Section 179
Roll the tractor and temperature-controlled trailer into one Section 179 purchase; the first-year deduction comes back larger than your cash down.
Carry Fuel and Reefer Diesel
A working-capital line carries fuel and reefer diesel between settlement and the broker's pay date.
Advance on Reefer-Premium Invoices
Factor your reefer-premium invoices through an A/R line so produce-load payments land now, not on net-30/45.
Reserve for Unit Rebuilds
A maintenance reserve line covers reefer-unit rebuilds and PM before a failure becomes a spoiled load.
Cold-Chain Equipment Refinance
Refinance the reefer units and trailers you already own into a lower-cost structure and pull the equity out for the next rig — approved on revenue, not collateral coverage.
Term Structure for a Second Rig
When a recurring temperature-controlled contract lands, a term loan puts the second reefer rig on the road.
Match Your Situation
The Cash-Flow Gaps We Fund for Reefer Carriers
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reefer unit rebuild | A compressor or APU failure on a loaded haul threatens a five-figure claim — a rebuild keeps the cold chain intact. | Equipment Financing | $75K–$150K | 3–7 days |
| Second reefer trailer | A dedicated grocery or pharma lane requires a second multi-temp trailer before the first guaranteed load ships. | Equipment Financing | $120K–$300K | 3–7 days |
| Produce-season surge | Volume spikes April–October and you need extra trailers, drivers, and reefer diesel before deposits clear. | Working Capital | $75K–$250K | 1–3 days |
| Cold-chain compliance upgrade | Temperature monitoring and food-safety sensors across the fleet to hold produce and pharma contracts. | Equipment Financing | $75K–$150K | 3–7 days |
| Reefer-premium receivables | Produce loads pay net-30/45 while fuel and reefer diesel bill now — advance against the invoices. | Invoice Factoring | $75K–$5M+ | 1–2 days |
The Products
How Reefer Financing Is Structured
Most reefer files fund between $75K and $5M+, structured to the rig, the unit rebuild, or the lane 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 | Reefer rigs, unit rebuilds, multi-temp trailers | 3–7 days | Equipment serves as collateral |
| Working Capital | $75K–$5M+ | 6mo–10yr | Produce-season fuel, reefer diesel, payroll | 1–3 days | Often unsecured, daily/weekly ACH |
| Invoice Factoring | $75K–$5M+ | Per invoice | Produce and pharma net-30/45 receivables | 1–2 days | Invoices secure the line, no PG typically |
| Business LOC | $75K–$5M+ | Revolving | Cold-chain compliance gear and PM reserves | 1–5 days | Unsecured line, no PG by default |
Tax Strategy
Section 179 on a Reefer Rig — Tractor and Multi-Temp Trailer — 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
“A reefer unit dying under a loaded trailer isn't a repair bill — it's a spoiled load, a claim, and a shipper rerouting next week's freight. Fund the rig before that day comes. §179 hands you a bigger first-year write-off than the down payment; your CPA runs the bracket.”
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 refrigerated / reefer 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
Refrigerated Trucking Financing
Keeping the Cold Chain Running When Capital Is Tight
Reefer freight pays a premium, but it costs a premium to run — fuel that burns 20% higher than dry van, $85K trailer-mounted units, and a cold chain that turns a single failure into a five-figure claim. When the reefer unit dies mid-haul with a loaded trailer, the repair can't wait on a bank that reads thin margins and says no. Our lenders read your reefer lanes and the revenue they throw off, and they fund the rebuild, the second trailer, or the produce-season ramp on that reality.
One Application, 70+ Lenders
A $45K second reefer trailer for a grocery lane, an emergency unit rebuild before the load spoils, or a produce-season line to bridge April-through-October volume — we connect you with 70+ lenders who fund refrigerated carriers 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
Refrigerated / Reefer Financing — Questions, Answered
Yes — reefer-unit rebuilds or a full multi-temp trailer can be funded on their own or rolled into a rig structure, sized on revenue, $75K–$5M+.
Working capital funds as fast as 1–3 days for reefer-unit rebuilds, APU replacements, and roadside emergencies — when a five-figure breakdown threatens a loaded haul, speed is the point.
Yes. Working-capital structures are sized on peak-season revenue to carry extra trailers, drivers, and reefer diesel through April–October before deposits clear.
No. Soft credit pull only — zero FICO impact.
That's exactly what a maintenance-reserve line or a fast equipment-repair structure is built for — funded on your reefer-lane revenue, not a perfect credit file, so the rebuild starts now and the load and the shipper relationship survive. Soft-pull review to start; structures run $75K–$5M+.
Recommended Funding
The Products That Fit Refrigerated / Reefer Work
Equipment Financing →
Finance the reefer rig, unit rebuilds, and multi-temp trailers — the equipment is the collateral.
Working Capital Loans →
Cover produce-season fuel, reefer diesel, and operating costs that run higher than dry van.
Invoice Factoring →
Advance on reefer-premium produce and pharma invoices instead of waiting net-30/45.
Business Line of Credit →
Draw for cold-chain compliance gear and PM reserves across the fleet.