Layover Pay Guide for Carriers
Layover pay compensates a carrier when a driver is forced to remain at or near a facility overnight due to a shipper or consignee delay that prevents completing the load within legal driving hours. It’s a flat daily or nightly rate — distinct from detention pay, which compensates hourly for time waiting. If your rate confirmation includes layover coverage, every forced overnight is a billable event.
Layover vs. Detention: What’s the Difference?
Carriers sometimes use these terms interchangeably, but they cover different situations:
| Detention Pay | Layover Pay | |
|---|---|---|
| What it covers | Time waiting beyond free time (hourly) | Forced overnight due to shipper delay |
| Rate structure | Per hour | Per night / per day |
| Trigger | Free time exceeded | Driver cannot legally depart; delay is shipper-caused |
| Typical rate | $50–$100/hour | $150–$300/night |
| Duration | Hours | One or more nights |
A truck can earn both on the same load — detention during the day while waiting for a door, and then layover if the wait stretches past HOS limits and the driver is stuck overnight.
When Does Layover Apply?
Layover applies when two conditions are met:
- The delay is attributable to the shipper or consignee — the driver can’t complete loading/unloading or can’t depart because the shipper isn’t ready
- The delay forces the driver to use HOS in a way that prevents them from legally completing the delivery without an extended off-duty period
In practical terms: the driver arrives, the shipper isn’t ready, the driver waits, free time expires (detention begins), and then hours expire and the driver has to take their 10-hour break before they can legally move the truck.
That forced 10-hour stop, caused by the shipper’s delay, is the layover event.
What Layover Does NOT Cover
- Driver choice to stop and rest (not shipper-caused)
- Weather delays
- Mechanical issues with the truck
- Load delays caused by the carrier’s own scheduling
- Delays at a rest area or truck stop (not a shipper facility)
The shipper-caused requirement is key. If the driver chose to sleep at the facility for their own convenience and the shipper was ready, that’s not layover.
Typical Layover Rates
| Rate Structure | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| Flat nightly fee | $150–$300 per night |
| Per diem equivalent | $200–$250 per day |
| Combined with detention | Detention continues hourly until departure |
Some rate confirmations cap the number of layover days they’ll cover. Check for language like “maximum 2 nights layover per load.”
How to Negotiate Layover Into Your Rate Confirmation
Like all accessorials, layover coverage needs to be in the rate confirmation to be clearly collectible. Before accepting a load to a facility known for extended delays, add:
“Layover: $250/night if driver is unable to depart facility due to shipper delay and HOS constraints. After 10:00 PM, overnight layover rate applies.”
If the broker resists, that’s valuable information about the load. Facilities with history of triggering layover are a real cost to your operation, and the rate confirmation should reflect that.
Documenting a Layover Event
Strong layover documentation includes:
Driver HOS logs (ELD records) The ELD log shows exactly when the driver went off-duty, for how long, and what their HOS status was. This is objective evidence that the driver couldn’t legally depart.
GPS records showing location Show the truck was at or adjacent to the shipper facility during the entire layover period — not at a truck stop 50 miles away.
Detention records If detention preceded the layover, include your detention documentation as well. The sequence (truck arrives → waits → free time expires → detention accrues → HOS expires → layover) should be visible in the records.
Shipper communication Any messages, check-in records, or communications showing the shipper acknowledged the delay. Facility gate records showing the truck was logged in overnight are particularly useful.
Rate confirmation Show the layover clause and the applicable rate.
Submitting a Layover Invoice
A layover invoice should include:
- Load/PRO number
- Facility name and address
- Scheduled pickup/delivery time
- Actual arrival time (GPS-verified)
- HOS log showing off-duty period (ELD export)
- Date and times of layover
- Number of nights
- Rate per night (per RC)
- Total layover owed
- Note on shipper-caused delay
Submit as a separate invoice from the base freight and detention invoices. Include all supporting documentation.
Layover and Detention on the Same Load: How to Bill Both
If a load generates both detention and layover:
- Detention: Bill hourly from free time expiration until the driver went off-duty
- Layover: Bill the nightly flat fee for the overnight period
- Detention continues: When the driver resumes next day, if waiting continues beyond the resumption of free time (check your RC), detention may start accruing again
Submit as a single invoice with clearly separated sections for each accessorial type.
Related Articles
- The Carrier’s Complete Guide to Accessorial Charges
- What Is Detention Pay in Trucking?
- TONU Pay: What It Is and How to Collect It
- How to Read a Rate Confirmation: A Carrier’s Guide
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