Dead Freight, TONU and Cancellation Charges: How to Invoice Them Correctly
When a load falls through you are often still owed money. How small carriers invoice dead freight, TONU and cancellation charges the right way — with charge codes.
A cancelled load is not a lost load
The truck is booked, the order is confirmed, and then the customer cancels at the last minute — or the goods aren't ready to load. Most small carriers write this off. In reality you are usually entitled to compensation: dead freight, a TONU fee, or a cancellation charge.
The problem is rarely the entitlement. It's the invoice. Without a clear line item and a documented reason, the charge is easy for the customer to ignore.
The charges you should know
- Dead Freight: Booked capacity that went unused — the order was firm, the cargo never came.
- TONU (Truck Ordered Not Used): The vehicle was ordered and showed up but wasn't used.
- Cancellation Charge: A late cancellation after order confirmation.
- Empty Run: Repositioning to the pickup with no transport following.
- Detention / Demurrage: Waiting time beyond the agreed free time at the ramp.
What turns a disputed claim into a paid invoice
- A clear code and description — "Dead Freight" or "TONU", not a vague catch-all line.
- A reference to the order — order/transport number, loading place and date carried over from the original booking.
- A reason — one line explaining why the charge applies.
How Cargon handles it
From a completed transport, Cargon lets you raise a debit position (invoice to the customer) or a credit note (to the carrier) using standardised charge codes (CR/DB) — dead freight, TONU, standby and 150+ others. The order, loading place and reference are pulled in automatically; you only add the amount and the reason. No POD is required, because no delivery took place.
You get a defensible invoice in under a minute — plus a "charges by code" report showing exactly how much detention, standby or dead freight you actually billed each month.