What is a flatbed truck?
A flatbed is an open-deck trailer with no walls or roof, used to haul cargo that's too large, too heavy, or too oddly shaped for an enclosed van — typically steel, lumber, machinery, building materials, and oversize loads. The driver is responsible for securing the load with straps, chains, and tarps.
A flatbed is the simplest trailer in the industry: a flat deck on wheels, 48 or 53 feet long, with stake pockets along the rails for tying down freight. Loads can be sidloaded with a forklift, top-loaded with a crane, or roll-loaded if they have wheels. The driver carries 8-12 ratchet straps, 4-8 chains and binders, edge protectors, dunnage (wood blocks for support), and a full set of tarps for weather protection. Securement isn't optional — FMCSA cargo securement rules dictate minimum tie-down counts and working load limits based on cargo weight, and a roadside inspection that finds inadequate securement is an out-of-service violation. Flatbed pay typically runs $0.20-$0.40/mile higher than dry van because the work is physically harder, the seasons are weather-exposed, and the qualified-driver pool is smaller. Specialty flatbed variants include step decks (a lower-deck portion behind the kingpin, for taller loads), removable goosenecks (for driving construction equipment on/off without a crane), and lowboys (very low deck for heavy machinery up to 80,000 lbs). Most flatbed carriers run regional rather than over-the-road, because flatbed freight clusters around steel mills, lumber yards, construction sites, and oil/gas fields — the lanes are concentrated.
- What's the difference between a flatbed and a step deck?A step deck (also called a drop deck) is a flatbed with a lower section behind the tractor, allowing it to haul taller cargo without an oversize-height permit. Standard flatbeds top out at about 8.5 feet of cargo height before they exceed the 13.5-foot legal road clearance; a step deck adds 1-2 feet of usable height. Step decks otherwise function identically to flatbeds — same securement rules, same kind of freight.
- Do flatbed drivers always have to tarp loads?No — tarping is shipper-dependent. Steel coils, kiln-dried lumber, and finished machinery usually require tarps; rough construction lumber, structural steel, and rebar usually don't. Tarping is paid extra ($25-$100 per load typical), takes 30-60 minutes per load, and is the single biggest source of flatbed driver injuries. Many carriers price tarped loads at a premium and route untarped loads to drivers who prefer them.
- Can a flatbed haul oversize loads?Yes, with permits. Loads wider than 8.5 feet, taller than 13.5 feet, longer than 53 feet, or heavier than 80,000 lbs gross need state permits in every state of travel and may require pilot cars, route surveys, time-of-day restrictions, and police escorts. Heavy-haul flatbed carriers specialize in permit moves and charge accordingly — single-state moves can be $1,500-$5,000; multi-state superloads can be six figures.