How to pick up a closeout load, step by step

How do you pick up a closeout load?

Confirm the load is paid and released. Get the pickup number and an appointment. Book a truck that fits the seller's dock and your pallets. At the dock, count the pallets, note any damage and the seal number on the bill of lading, and photograph the load. Do not sign for anything you have not seen.

Closeout loads are usually sold where they sit, so pickup is the buyer's job. It is also the point where you stop being able to fix problems cheaply. A wrong count caught at the dock is a phone call. The same count found at your warehouse is a dispute.

Before the truck is booked

1. Confirm payment and release

Money first, then truck. Get written confirmation from the seller that payment has cleared and the load is released to you. If the deal included a part payment up front, confirm the rest is settled. Before you send money anywhere, verify the bank details by phoning the seller on a number you already have or that is listed on its official website, never one from the email that carried the details. For payment risk, see how closeout buyers pay.

On Skyline Dealz Marketplace, the order is simple: once your offer is accepted, the load is on hold for you; you pay and arrange pickup on the written terms for that deal; then the load is marked sold and released to your carrier.

2. Get the pickup details in writing

Ask for:

• Full pickup address and the dock or door number
• Warehouse hours and whether an appointment is required
• The pickup number (or release or PO number)
• Pallet count, dimensions and weights, and whether pallets are stackable
• Who loads, and what the warehouse needs from the driver

3. Check free time

Warehouses that sell closeouts often charge storage once free days run out. Ask how many free days you have and what storage costs after that, and book the truck inside the free period. When you buy on Skyline Dealz Marketplace, ask us for the pickup details on the deal, including the pickup window, before you book a truck.

4. Know the pickup term

Under EXW, the buyer takes on loading and risk from the seller's premises. Under US domestic "FOB origin", risk usually passes when the goods are handed to your carrier. Many warehouses load your truck anyway with their forklift. That is helpful, but it does not change the term on paper. If they load, agree in writing whose risk loading is.

5. Match the equipment

Also send straps or load bars to secure partial loads. A half-empty trailer with nothing holding the pallets will arrive with pallets on their side. For trailer capacity, see how many pallets fit in a trailer or container.

6. Brief the driver

Give the carrier, in writing: pickup address, appointment time, pickup number, pallet count, delivery address and receiving hours, and any special instructions. Ask the driver to call if the count, condition or paperwork does not match. Ask the carrier for the driver's name, truck and trailer numbers so the warehouse can check them on arrival.

7. Confirm the day before

Call the warehouse. Is the load staged? Is the dock booked? Any change to hours? Then confirm the carrier is still coming.

At the dock

1. Check identity. The warehouse should match the driver, truck and pickup number to what you sent. Ask them to.
2. Count the pallets. Count before loading and again on the trailer. Compare with the manifest and the deal.
3. Look at condition. Leaning, torn wrap, wet cartons, broken pallets. Note anything visible now.
4. Load properly. Heavy pallets on the floor, nothing stacked on non-stackable freight, load locks or straps on any gap.
5. Photograph. Each pallet, the loaded trailer from the back door, and the seal once applied.
6. Complete the BOL. Piece count in numbers ("22 pallets", not "1 load"), weight, any exceptions, and the seal number. The driver signs; the shipper signs.
7. Keep a copy. Ask the warehouse to email a scan of the signed bill of lading the same day.

The bill of lading is the document every later claim or dispute will turn on. If the driver was not allowed to count, the BOL will often say "shipper load and count". That moves count disputes away from the carrier and onto the shipper, which makes your own photos more important.

What if the load is not ready?

Act fast. Ask the warehouse for a firm ready time in writing. Tell your carrier and decide together: wait on detention, reschedule, or cancel. A carrier canceled on short notice may charge a truck-ordered-not-used fee. The amount is set in the carrier's rate confirmation, so read that line before you sign it. Ask the seller in writing who covers detention or that fee, and keep the messages. If the count is short at pickup, do not take a partial load without written agreement on what happens to the rest.

Worked example: a 22-pallet pickup

Illustration only. Every detail is hypothetical.

A buyer agrees a 22-pallet general merchandise load, EXW at the seller's warehouse. The seller says the pallets are stackable, average 48 x 40 x 55 in, and weigh about 700 lb each.

• Space. 22 pallets single-stacked need 11 rows of two. A 53-ft van holds 13 rows, so two rows stay empty. The buyer asks the driver to bring load bars for the gap.
• Weight. 22 x 700 = 15,400 lb. Far below any truckload weight limit. Space, not weight, decides the equipment.
• Dock. The seller has a dock-high door and a forklift. A standard dry van is enough. No liftgate.
• Delivery. The buyer's store has no dock. The buyer books a delivery liftgate, or arranges a forklift rental at the store for the morning.
• At pickup. The warehouse loads 22 pallets. Pallet 17 has torn wrap and two crushed cartons. The driver notes "P17 wrap torn, 2 ctns crushed" on the BOL, takes photos, and the seal number is written in.

When the trailer arrives, the buyer checks the seal number against the BOL before the doors open. The torn pallet is already documented, so any further damage is clearly in transit. That is the whole point of doing the work at pickup.

Pickup checklist

Mistakes to avoid

• Sending the pickup number to a stranger. A pickup number releases goods. Verify the carrier first; read freight broker or own carrier.
• Assuming the seller loads for free. Many do. Some charge. Ask.
• Booking a 53-ft trailer for a site that cannot take one. Some city warehouses only take box trucks. Ask about access.
• Leaving gaps unsecured. Partial loads shift.
• Accepting a short count without paperwork. Write down what was loaded and what is owed.
• Forgetting the other end. Arrange your delivery appointment and receiving labor before the truck leaves the seller.

After pickup

Track the load and keep your receiving team ready. When it arrives, follow how to inspect a load and file a freight claim. For trip pricing, see what a full truckload costs, and for the full picture of modes, terms and claims, the freight and logistics guide.

Skyline Dealz Marketplace offers closeout truckloads and pallets to approved buyers, and each listing shows the ship-from location so you can plan pickup before you offer. To receive matching loads, request access.