Owner operator settlement software that pays inside 15 days and shows every deduction on the statement
An owner operator settlement is the pay statement a motor carrier issues to a leased owner operator: gross revenue or mileage pay, minus the chargebacks the lease allows, plus or minus escrow movements. It is regulated, not discretionary. 49 CFR 376.12 requires payment within 15 days of the delivery documents, an itemised explanation of every deduction, a written accounting of escrow, and return of the escrow fund no later than 45 days after termination. Neurobird builds that statement from the lease.
Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement in short
- Compute pay from the lease terms: percentage of gross, mileage or a mixed rate, with the rated freight bill attached
- Itemise every chargeback with the method of computation the lease states, before the money is deducted
- Keep a per driver escrow ledger with deposits, deductions, quarterly interest and a return clock
- 15 days The lease must specify that payment is made within 15 days after submission of the necessary delivery documents, and the carrier may not set a submission deadline of less than 15 days from the end of the trip. eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(f)
- 45 days Where an escrow fund is required, the lease must state that in no event is the fund returned later than 45 days from the date of termination, with a final accounting of every deduction made from it. eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(k)
- Pricing runs 220 to 860 US dollars per month across 3 tiers. Early access is free.
What carriers that settle owner operators actually deal with
Why it stays broken
Truth in leasing is old law that never got software written for it. Accounting packages model a vendor payment, not a lease with itemised chargebacks and an escrow fund earning interest at the 91 day Treasury bill rate. Transport management systems model loads, not settlements. So the statement that has to satisfy 49 CFR 376.12 gets built by hand, every week, by the one person who knows how.
Payment is due within 15 days of the delivery documents, and the carrier may not set a submission time limit shorter than 15 days from the end of the trip.
How does Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement work?
The lease is the source
Pay basis, chargeback list, escrow amount, interest terms and termination conditions are held as data, so the statement cannot contain a line the lease does not allow.
Every deduction is explained
Each chargeback carries its computation and the supporting document, because the rule requires the lessor to be able to check the validity of the charge.
Escrow keeps its own book
Deposits, applications, quarterly interest and the 45 day return clock live on a per driver ledger, not inside a single company balance.
Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement Operations Platform
Build the settlement from the lease instead of from a spreadsheet. Pay basis, allowed chargebacks, escrow terms and interest all come from the signed lease, so every line on the statement traces back to the clause that permits it.
- 1Compute pay from the lease terms: percentage of gross, mileage or a mixed rate, with the rated freight bill attached
- 2Itemise every chargeback with the method of computation the lease states, before the money is deducted
- 3Keep a per driver escrow ledger with deposits, deductions, quarterly interest and a return clock
- 4Close settlements inside the 15 day window and show the driver the same arithmetic you used
What changes with Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement?
The same work, read left to right: how it runs today, and how it runs once the record is in one place.
| Today | With Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement |
|---|---|
| Chargebacks are computed in a spreadsheet nobody can reproduce two weeks later when the driver asks how the number was reached | Compute pay from the lease terms: percentage of gross, mileage or a mixed rate, with the rated freight bill attached |
| Escrow is a running balance in the accounting system, with no per driver accounting of what went in, what came out and what interest was paid | Itemise every chargeback with the method of computation the lease states, before the money is deducted |
| Settlement day is a manual assembly of freight bills, fuel, advances, insurance and repairs, and one late document moves the whole batch | Keep a per driver escrow ledger with deposits, deductions, quarterly interest and a return clock |
Who is this for?
Same settlement engine, three different fleets.
You settle weekly
Percentage of gross pay with fuel, insurance and trailer rent charged back. You need statements the drivers trust and a copy of the rated freight bill on every one.
You settle on volume
Hundreds of small settlements with per stop pay and equipment deductions. You need the arithmetic automated without losing the itemisation.
You settle on long jobs
Long haul jobs, advances and escrow that runs for years. You need a per driver ledger that still reconciles at termination.
What actually governs an owner operator settlement
Useful if you are writing a lease or answering a driver dispute. Each figure links to the regulation.
The lease must specify that payment is made within 15 days after submission of the necessary delivery documents, and the carrier may not set a submission deadline of less than 15 days from the end of the trip.
eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(f)Where an escrow fund is required, the lease must state that in no event is the fund returned later than 45 days from the date of termination, with a final accounting of every deduction made from it.
eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(k)While the carrier holds an escrow fund it must pay interest at least quarterly, at a rate at least equal to the average yield on 91 day, 13 week Treasury bills set in the weekly Treasury auction.
eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(k)(5)Paragraph (h) requires the lease to specify every item that may be charged back, together with how the amount of each item is computed, and requires the lessor to be given the documents needed to check the charge.
eCFR, 49 CFR 376.12(h)A written lease is required, receipts must be given when possession passes in each direction, and a copy of the lease must be on the equipment for the duration of the lease.
eCFR, 49 CFR 376.11Duty limits of 60 hours in 7 days or 70 hours in 8 days shape what a leased driver can legally earn in a settlement period, which is why the log and the statement belong in the same conversation.
eCFR, 49 CFR 395.3The settlement run, line by line
A working preview. Tick a settlement to move it through the run.
| Line item | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Escrow return, lease terminated | $1,840 | |
| Insurance chargeback, occupational accident | $620 | |
| Settlement 4412, percentage of gross | $3,275 | |
| Escrow deduction, trailer damage | $455 |
Click recover to add a missed line to the invoice.
Owner operator settlement software questions, answered
Key terms
- What is an owner operator settlement?
- It is the periodic pay statement a motor carrier issues to a leased owner operator. It shows the pay basis from the lease, the revenue or miles it applies to, every chargeback the lease permits with its computation, and any escrow movement. Under 49 CFR 376.12 it is a regulated document, not an internal worksheet.
- What are the truth in leasing rules?
- They are the federal requirements in 49 CFR Part 376 that govern leases between authorised carriers and equipment owners. They set out what the written lease must contain, the receipts required when possession changes hands, the 15 day payment period, itemised chargebacks, insurance disclosure and how an escrow fund must be accounted for and returned.
Does this replace our accounting system?
No. The ledger stays where it is. What lives here is the settlement itself: the lease terms it is computed from, the documents that support each line, and the escrow ledger per driver, so the statement and the payment agree without a spreadsheet in between.
How is escrow handled?
As a ledger for each driver rather than a single company balance. Deposits, applications against the items the lease names, quarterly interest and the 45 day return clock all sit on the same record, so the final accounting at termination is already written.
Can drivers see how a number was reached?
Yes. Each chargeback carries the method of computation from the lease and the supporting document, because the rule gives the lessor the right to see what is needed to determine whether the charge is valid.
Does it handle percentage of gross pay?
Yes. Where pay is a percentage of gross revenue the rated freight bill has to be provided at or before settlement, so the statement carries the rated document rather than a summary line.
Why we are building this
Owner operator settlement is one of the few back office jobs with a federal rule written specifically for it, and one of the few with almost no software written for it.
So the statement gets assembled by hand from freight bills, fuel, advances, insurance and repairs, and the escrow fund lives as a single number rather than 40 ledgers. When a driver asks a fair question, answering it takes a day.
We would rather build this with settlement clerks than with people who have read Part 376. Tell us how your run works, and where we have got it wrong.
Where the requirement comes from
The federal leasing rules an owner operator settlement is measured against.
- 49 CFR Part 376, lease and interchange of vehicles The truth in leasing part in full: what a lease must contain, what receipts are required and which arrangements are exempt.
- 49 CFR 376.12, lease requirements The clause by clause list, including the payment period, chargeback itemisation, insurance disclosure and escrow accounting.
- 49 CFR 376.11, general leasing requirements The written lease, the receipts on both ends of possession and the copy carried on the equipment.
- 49 CFR Part 395, hours of service The records of duty status that Part 376 names as documentation a carrier may require before paying.
- IRS, Form SS-8 The determination request behind worker classification, which is the question sitting underneath every leased owner operator relationship.
- IRS, independent contractor or employee The common law control tests the IRS applies, in the agency's own words.
How much does Neurobird Owner Operator Settlement cost?
Priced per fleet because the lease and the escrow terms are fleet level things. Drivers, settlements and documents are unlimited on every tier.
- Lease held as data
- Settlement runs
- Itemised chargebacks
- Driver statements
- Email support
- Everything in Small fleet
- Per driver escrow ledger
- Quarterly interest handling
- Document attachment
- Named contact
- Everything in Settlement office
- Multiple operating authorities
- Termination accounting
- Retention ready archives
- Onboarding included
Get free early access
If you settle owner operators, tell us how long a settlement run takes and what a driver dispute costs you to answer.
Straight answer on where this is: In development. Early access gets the working preview, a say in what ships first, and early access pricing. It does not get you a login today.
Prefer email? Write to office@neurobird.com and a person will reply. No autoresponder.