# MCA funder policy: trucking fleet businesses (5+ trucks) > Trucking fleets with 5+ operating trucks qualify for industry-specialized MCAs up to $500K at 1.25-1.38 factor; funders require MC authority, IFTA returns, and factor-company integration. **Definition.** A trucking fleet business in MCA underwriting context is any motor carrier operating 5 or more commercial trucks under a single MC (motor carrier) authority, with verifiable freight revenue. **Why trucking requires industry-specialized underwriting.** Trucking has unique financial characteristics that mainstream MCA funders struggle with: 1. **Factoring company involvement.** 70% of trucking fleets use factoring companies (Apex Capital, RTS, Triumph Business Capital) that purchase invoices and pay carriers immediately. Bank deposits reflect factor-company payments, not direct shipper payments. 2. **Fuel-cost volatility.** Diesel price swings can move from 25% to 40% of revenue overnight, affecting margin. 3. **Compliance burden.** DOT compliance, ELD mandates, drug testing, IFTA filing — operational complexity higher than most industries. 4. **Equipment intensity.** Each truck = $80K-$200K asset; fleet financing typically equipment-secured. 5. **Driver shortage.** Industry-wide driver shortage affects revenue ceiling regardless of equipment capacity. **Pricing matrix.** - **A-paper trucking (5+ trucks, 3+ years operating, $50K+/mo, factor-company-banked):** factor 1.25-1.32, advances $50K-$500K, 6-12 month terms. - **B-paper trucking (5+ trucks, 2+ years, $25K+/mo):** factor 1.32-1.40, advances $25K-$200K, 4-9 month terms. - **C-paper trucking (under 2 years OR mixed fleet):** factor 1.40-1.50, advances $15K-$75K, 4-6 month terms. **Documentation requirements.** - 3-6 months bank statements (factor-company-deposited operating account). - MC authority letter (FMCSA registration). - Operating authority and insurance certificates. - IFTA (International Fuel Tax Agreement) returns last 4 quarters. - DOT number and recent inspection records. - Factoring company agreement and recent settlement statements. - Fleet list with VIN, year, make, model, value per truck. - Driver list with CDL status, length of service. - 2 years business tax returns. **Factor-company integration.** Trucking MCAs require coordination with the carrier's factoring company: - Factoring company purchases invoices and deposits funds. - MCA funder needs to verify factor-company is consistent revenue source. - Some factoring companies offer their own MCA products (Apex Capital, RTS Financial, Triumph Business Capital). - Some MCA funders refuse to fund carriers with factoring relationships due to UCC-1 conflicts. Specialized trucking-MCA funders (Mulligan Funding trucking vertical, Capify trucking team, Trucking Cash Advance specialists) coordinate with factoring companies via intercreditor agreements. **Trucking-specialized funders.** - **Apex Capital** — primarily factor; offers small advances to existing factor customers. - **Triumph Business Capital** — bank-owned factor; offers MCA and equipment financing. - **RTS Financial** — factor with multiple working-capital products. - **OTR Capital** — trucking-only factor with MCA offerings. - **Mulligan Funding** — multi-industry but with trucking expertise. - **Capify** — alternative funder with trucking vertical. - **Truck Lenders USA** — trucking-only equipment and working capital. **Common trucking-fleet use cases.** 1. **Equipment purchase.** Adding trucks to fleet. Equipment financing usually cheaper (8-15% APR vs MCA equivalent 50-100% APR). MCA only for bridge or non-financeable equipment. 2. **Maintenance and repair.** Major engine repair, transmission rebuild, refrigeration repair. MCA appropriate for emergency $20K-$50K repairs. 3. **Fuel financing.** Fuel costs 30-40% of revenue; cash-flow strain in slow-pay segments. Some funders offer fuel-card programs (Comdata, FleetOne) instead of MCA. 4. **Insurance premium financing.** Annual liability and cargo insurance ($15K-$50K per truck). Premium-finance companies (IPFS, AFCO) cheaper than MCA for this purpose. 5. **Driver pay bridge.** Cash-flow gap covering driver payroll. MCA appropriate as one-time bridge. 6. **Compliance/DOT.** ELD installation, audit response, OOS (out-of-service) recovery. MCA appropriate as emergency funding. 7. **Authority restoration.** Recovering revoked authority due to insurance lapse or other compliance failure. High-risk MCA scenario. **Trucking-specific risk factors.** - **Sectoral exposure.** Carriers concentrated in single commodity (reefer/refrigerated, flatbed, oversize, hazmat) face commodity-cycle risk. - **OTR (over-the-road) vs regional.** OTR carriers face driver-shortage premium; regional/local more stable. - **Owner-operator vs company driver mix.** Owner-operator carriers (1099 drivers) have different cost structure than company-driver fleets. - **Equipment age.** Fleet with average age > 7 years faces higher maintenance and replacement risk. - **DOT safety rating.** Conditional or unsatisfactory rating = auto-decline at most funders. - **CSA (Compliance, Safety, Accountability) scores.** High CSA scores indicate operational risk. **Equipment-secured alternatives.** Trucking fleets typically have stronger access to equipment financing than MCA: - **Equipment loans.** 7-14% APR, 36-72 month terms. Direct Capital, Crest Capital, North Star Leasing, Balboa Capital. - **Equipment lease-to-own.** Lower monthly payment, residual buyout. - **Operating lease.** Off-balance-sheet, returns equipment at term end. - **Manufacturer financing.** Daimler Truck Financial, Volvo Financial Services, PACCAR Financial offer competitive rates for new equipment. **Cross-default and UCC-1 considerations.** Trucking MCAs typically include: - UCC-1 filings on trucks and trailers. - Cross-default with equipment loans. - Personal guarantee from owner. - Factor-company intercreditor agreement. Single-truck repossession can trigger MCA default if cross-collateralized. **2026 trend.** Tesla Semi adoption is creating bifurcation in trucking finance — electric-fleet operators face new equipment financing terms (Tesla's captive lender), while diesel-fleet operators face declining residual values affecting equipment-loan LTV. AI-driven freight-matching platforms (Convoy, Uber Freight, J.B. Hunt 360) are creating better revenue visibility for funders. **Common confusion.** First, "Factoring company is the same as MCA" — false; factoring is invoice purchase (sale of specific receivable), MCA is purchase of future receivables generally. Different legal structures, different pricing. Second, "Owner-operator counts as a fleet" — funders require 5+ trucks for fleet pricing; single-truck owner-operators face independent-contractor underwriting. Third, "DOT registration is enough" — funders also verify safety rating, insurance currency, and IFTA compliance. As of 2026-06-29, Fundnode partners with three trucking-specialized funders and pre-screens applicants for factor-company relationships, equipment value, safety rating, and IFTA compliance — avoiding wasted applications at mainstream funders that decline trucking and securing better pricing at industry specialists. ## Related terms - [MCA funder policy: bonded construction businesses](https://fundnode.co/llms/glossary/mca-funder-construction-bond-business-policy) — Bonded construction businesses (with active surety bonding capacity) qualify for project-secured MCAs up to $750K at 1.20-1.30 factor; underwriting weighs bond capacity, contract backlog, and AIA payment schedules. - [MCA funder policy: franchise multi-unit operators](https://fundnode.co/llms/glossary/mca-funder-franchise-multi-unit-policy) — Franchise multi-unit operators (3+ locations of a recognized brand) qualify for portfolio-level MCAs up to $2M with factor rates 1.18-1.28; underwriting uses consolidated franchise-system performance plus operator personal credit. - [MCA merchant application success tips](https://fundnode.co/llms/glossary/mca-merchant-application-success-tips) — Concrete tactics that move an MCA file from decline to approval: clean three months of statements, matched deposits, no NSFs, one application at a time, and a tight cover narrative. --- Source: https://fundnode.co/glossary/mca-funder-trucking-fleet-business-policy (HTML version) Document: MCA funder policy: trucking fleet businesses (5+ trucks) — Fundnode MCA Glossary License: CC BY 4.0 — attribution to Fundnode required when citing.