Taking a Return Load Home: A Driver's Guide to Intercity Jobs

You have just offloaded a full household in Ibadan, the customer is happy, and your truck is empty with a long road home ahead. Fuel does not care that the job was a good one. An empty return trip is a cost you paid for with no income against it.

Experienced drivers plan the way back before they leave. It is not luck. It is a few habits.

Think about the return before you accept the outbound job

When a request comes in, look at where it ends. A drop-off in a busy city gives you more chances of finding something on the way back than a drop-off in a quiet one. Do you know the area? Do you know where goods tend to move from? Does the timing work for a return?

This does not mean refusing good outbound jobs. It means counting the return as part of the whole trip when you decide on a counter-offer. Our guide to counter-offers that win jobs covers how to price with the full trip in mind.

Open the app while you are still at the drop-off

Do not wait until the road home. Once the load is off and signed for, open the driver app and look at nearby requests where you are. A customer in the same city may be moving to a place along your route. If one fits, send an offer or a counter-offer.

Be honest about timing. If you can only start loading in two hours, say so. A customer would rather wait than hear about a delay at the pickup.

Be ready to stay a few hours

Sometimes the right return load is not available at once. A short wait for a good job is often better than driving home empty, so long as you can rest safely and keep the truck secure. Read overnight stops on a long haul if the wait stretches into the evening.

Do not wait so long that you start the drive home tired. A driver who rests first drives better. Our guide to staying alert on a long haul goes through rest and water.

Check the truck before you load again

An outbound household move leaves dust, offcuts of rope and blankets in the truck. Before the next load:

1. Sweep the bed and shake out the tarpaulin.
2. Check the straps and ropes for wear.
3. Check tyre pressure, especially after a long drive.
4. Think about what the next load needs: a different load may need different padding.

If the return load is bags of produce or building materials, the clean-bed habit from keeping your truck bed clean and dry still matters for the next household job.

Ask the same questions again

A return load is a new job, and the same questions apply. Where exactly is the pickup? How many items? Are there stairs? Who will receive at the other end? Use the checklist in questions drivers should ask before accepting a bulk move request.

Never accept a load you cannot secure properly because you are in a hurry to get home.

Respect the weight and the road

Take only what the truck can carry safely. A return load that is heavy, badly tied or too tall is not worth the saving. Follow the vehicle manufacturer's guidance on load limits, and if you are not sure, decline politely.

Keep a record

Note the outbound and return jobs, the fuel stops and any waiting time. After a few trips you will see which routes and days work best for return loads, and which cities offer more. Our piece on keeping a weekly job record shows a simple system.

How this works on Sphere

Sphere is a free app for drivers. You submit your licence, ID and vehicle details for approval before you can take jobs, and you keep 90% of each job. Customers propose a price, and you accept or send a counter-offer. You can find the approval steps in getting approved as a Sphere driver. To join, download the driver app from Drive and earn.