TONU (Truck Ordered Not Used)

TONU stands for Truck Ordered Not Used, and it refers to the fee charged by a carrier when they dispatch a truck to a shipper's facility for a scheduled pickup, only to find that the load has been canceled, is not ready, or cannot be loaded for some reason outside the carrier's control. The TONU fee compensates the carrier for the costs of dispatching the truck, the driver's time, and the fuel consumed on a trip that generated no revenue.

Standard TONU fees in the reefer freight market range from $200 to $500, depending on the distance the carrier traveled to reach the pickup location and the market conditions at the time. Some carriers charge a flat fee, while others base the charge on the miles driven to the pickup point. In tight capacity markets, TONU fees may be higher because the carrier has turned down other revenue opportunities in order to service the scheduled load.

For refrigerated shipments, TONU situations are particularly costly because the carrier has already pre-cooled the trailer to the required temperature, consuming additional fuel for the reefer unit. If the carrier has turned down other loads to accommodate a shipper's specific temperature and timing requirements, the opportunity cost of the TONU event is even higher.

Common causes of TONU events include production delays at food manufacturing facilities, late harvest or packing delays in produce, miscommunication about pickup dates, and order cancellations by the end customer. Shippers can reduce TONU occurrences by improving communication with their logistics partners, providing advance notice when loads are at risk of cancellation, and maintaining accurate production and inventory forecasting systems.