Cheap freight shipping might look like a win on paper, but the lowest rates can often hide the highest risk.
From damaged goods to delayed deliveries to unexpected fees that erode your margins, there are potential downsides to chasing the lowest rate on your shipments. While your budget is paramount to your business's overall health, when the freight is critical and the timelines are tight, service quality can be equally — if not more — important.
After 70 years in the transportation industry, the team at Anderson Trucking Service (ATS) has certainly seen our fair share of freight rate volatility. But one thing has held true over the decades: in the transportation industry, you get what you pay for.
In this blog, we’ll discuss some of the factors that go into what transportation providers charge for their rates and what you can expect with cheap freight services.
Key Takeaways
- Cheap freight rates often come with trade-offs in reliability, communication, and service quality.
- Hidden costs of cheap shipping include the risk of claims, re-shipments, detention time, and reputational and relationship damage.
- Choosing a well-vetted, trusted carrier (even if their rates are higher than some) can help protect long-term profitability, not just short-term savings.
When "Cheap" Freight Comes at a Cost
Every shipper has felt the pressure to cut transportation costs. But when a rate seems too good to be true, it usually is.
Many low-price carriers reduce expenses by overbooking lanes, running older equipment, or using inexperienced drivers. The result? Missed appointments, inconsistent updates, and service failures that quickly outweigh the initial savings.
As you can imagine, these "hidden" costs of cheap freight can take a high toll on a company's overall transportation budget. Avoiding them is key — and in order to minimize your risk, you first must know what you're looking for.
Determining your potential exposure to these hidden costs requires deeper interrogation of the carrier's business and investments, not just the number at the bottom of your freight quote.
Freight Cost vs. Quality: How to Vet a Cheap Freight Quote
Let's say you've received a cheap freight quote from a carrier that, up to this point, hasn't displayed any glaring red flags like a lack of customer reviews, trouble reaching a representative via phone, or a concerning safety or legal history.
What are the next steps in determining whether their rate is too good to be true? First, consider what's not spelled out in black and white in your quote:
- The carrier’s overhead, infrastructure, and network
- The age and quality of their equipment
- The technology they utilize
- The quality of their drivers
- The level of service you’ll receive when working with them
- The safety of your freight and your reputation
Low-cost carriers typically sacrifice key elements that determine reliability, efficiency, and long-term value. A freight rate that looks great on paper often hides operational gaps that lead to costly service failures.
Ultimately, it is up to you to ask questions about a carrier's priorities and practices to get a better sense of whether the rate you've been quoted is one worth taking. For each of the below downsides to choosing a low-cost carrier, we'll also provide some questions you may consider asking to help you in your vetting process.
1. Network & Infrastructure Limitations
Carriers that haven't invested in widespread assets, trailer yards, or maintenance facilities can’t respond quickly when needs arise. Without enough drivers or equipment in the right regions, you’ll face capacity delays and higher costs when freight can’t move on time.
Cheap carriers also tend to lack warehousing or overflow solutions, leaving shippers stranded when unexpected surges occur.
Network & Infrastructure Vetting Questions to Ask:
- How many terminals, yards, or maintenance facilities do you operate?
- Do you have drivers and equipment positioned near my key shipping lanes?
- If I have a last-minute or overflow shipment, how quickly can you cover it?
- What happens if equipment isn’t available?
2. Equipment Issues = Freight Integrity Issues
To cut expenses, discount carriers often operate older trucks and trailers, and may delay maintenance cycles.
That can lead to more breakdowns, stranded freight, and damaged goods. They may also skimp on securement tools like straps or protective wraps, exposing freight to preventable loss and customer dissatisfaction.
Equipment-Related Vetting Questions to Ask:
- What is the average age of your tractors and trailers?
- How often is your equipment serviced?
- Do you follow a preventive maintenance schedule?
- What back-up plan do you have if a truck breaks down mid-shipment?
- How do you handle load securement?
- What equipment or materials do your drivers carry (e.g., straps, chains, pad wraps)?
3. Limited Technology & Freight Tracking
Advanced tracking platforms, customer portals, and automated updates cost money to maintain — and budget carriers usually don’t invest in them.
As a result, shippers lose shipment visibility. You may waste time chasing updates, find yourself with no answers when your shipment encounters delays, and end up operating without real-time insight into the carrier's delivery performance.
Technology & Freight Tracking Vetting Questions to Ask:
- Do you provide a customer portal or other self-serve load tracking system?
- Can I access shipment documents, proofs of delivery, and invoices digitally?
- Do you offer automated status notifications or real-time GPS tracking?
4. Great Rate, Poor Service
Reliable carriers assign a dedicated point of contact and build systems that share customer preferences and needs across teams. Cheap providers rarely offer this. Instead, shippers get bounced between departments, losing time and consistency in communication — and facing preventable service errors.
Service Quality Vetting Questions to Ask:
- Will our account have a single, dedicated point of contact?
- What is your typical response time to customer inquiries?
- How do you communicate shipment issues or delays?
5. Inexperienced & Underpaid Drivers
Low-cost carriers tend to underpay drivers or employ inexperienced drivers, which can lead to high turnover and a decrease in quality service.
Veteran drivers (the ones who prioritize efficiency, customer communication, and safe handling) are unlikely to stick around these types of carriers for long. When they cut their losses and leave the low-cost carrier in question, they could be stranding your freight with inconsistent or careless service.
Driver Experience & Retention Vetting Questions to Ask:
- What is your average driver tenure?
- How do you recruit and retain experienced drivers?
- Do you provide ongoing driver training or performance incentives?
6. Lax Safety Culture
Even if your initial vetting on a company didn't turn up any glaring safety concerns or litigation, it's worth taking a deeper look at their safety culture.
Why? Companies that compete solely on price rarely invest in safety training, compliance technology, or route planning. This increases the risk of accidents, damage, and reputational harm — especially if it's your brand name on the trailer.
Safety & Compliance Vetting Questions to Ask:
- What safety training programs or technologies do you use?
- How do you monitor driver performance and compliance?
- What’s your safety rating with the FMCSA?
- Do you have in-house teams for permitting and route planning?
The bottom line? Smart shippers look beyond sticker price to evaluate freight cost vs. quality.
A dependable carrier provides predictable transit times, proactive communication, and accurate documentation — all of which protect your supply chain and your reputation. Paying a fair rate upfront often saves thousands in downstream losses.
Think of it as you would freight insurance: the small premium you pay for quality service prevents much larger financial pain later.
Value Beats “Cheap” Every Time
While consumers may refer to a deal as a "good value," when it comes to freight rates, "value" can't be defined by cost alone.
The true value of a rate (and the carrier providing it) is in the service quality: the caliber of equipment, the experience of the drivers, the responsiveness of the team, and the promises kept.
So, as you request quotes and select carriers for your network, it’s important to do your due diligence to confirm that the rate you’re paying still buys you reliability, visibility, and peace of mind — no matter how low that rate is.
Doing so could be the difference between a smooth shipment and a budgetary bait-and-switch. With a little extra legwork, you can safeguard your supply chain against losses and delays — and maybe save some cash in the long run, too.
