# Trailer leasing software that knows which unit is on lease, when its inspection lapses and who owes the damage

> Trailer leasing fleet management is the record a lessor keeps of every trailer it owns: who holds it under a written lease, what condition it left in, and whether the unit still carries a valid periodic inspection. The federal rules are specific. 49 CFR 376.12 lists what the written lease must contain, and 49 CFR 396.17 bars a carrier from using a trailer unless every component in appendix A passed inspection during the preceding 12 months, with the documentation carried on the vehicle. Neurobird holds the unit, the lease and the inspection date on one record.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/trailerleasing/
- Product: Neurobird Trailer Leasing Fleet Inspection Tracking Platform
- Niche: trailer leasing fleet
- Buyer: trailer lessors and the carriers that lease from them
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-22

## What Neurobird Trailer Leasing Fleet does

- Hold every lease clause 376.12 requires against the unit it actually covers
- Run the periodic inspection date per trailer so a lapse shows up in the office, not at a scale
- Keep the inspection report for the 14 months the rule wants it kept, where the unit is housed
- Track escrow deductions and the quarterly interest the lease promised the owner

## How it works

1. **Register the unit** VIN, plate, ownership and the lease currently covering it, captured once, so a trailer is never a row in a spreadsheet that lives on one person's laptop.
2. **Run the inspection clock** Each unit carries its own periodic inspection date and its own report, so the 12 month window is a date on a board rather than a decal somebody has to walk out to the yard and read.
3. **Settle at return** Condition at handover, defects reported during the term and the escrow accounting land on the same record, so the end of lease conversation has evidence behind it instead of two opinions.

## From the source material

> The lease shall specify that payment to the lessor shall be made within 15 days after submission of the necessary delivery documents concerning a trip in the service of the authorized carrier .

Source: FMCSA 49 CFR 376.12, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/376.12

## Industry context

- **15 days** Deadline 49 CFR 376.12 puts on paying the lessor after the necessary delivery documents are submitted. The carrier may not set a time limit on when the lessor submits them, and payment cannot be made contingent on a clean bill of lading. (source: FMCSA 49 CFR 376.12, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/376.12)
- **45 days** Longest a carrier may hold an escrow fund after the lease terminates. While it holds the fund it must account for every transaction and pay interest at least quarterly, benchmarked to the yield on 91 day, 13 week Treasury bills. (source: FMCSA 49 CFR 376.12, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/376.12)
- **12 months** Period within which every component in appendix A must have passed an inspection before a carrier may use the vehicle, or an intermodal equipment provider may tender it for interchange, with documentation on the vehicle. (source: FMCSA 49 CFR 396.17, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.17)
- **14 months** How long the periodic inspection report must be retained, kept where the vehicle is housed or maintained, and produced on demand to an authorized federal, state or local official. (source: FMCSA 49 CFR 396.21, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.21)
- **30 consecutive days** Span of maintenance records a carrier must hold for each vehicle under its control, retained where the vehicle is housed for 1 year and for 6 months after the vehicle leaves that control. (source: FMCSA 49 CFR 396.3, https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.3)
- **$15 per year** Texas token trailer registration fee, open to semitrailers with a gross weight over 6,000 pounds that run in a fleet behind apportioned power units, so the plate stops being an annual renewal chase. (source: Texas DMV, token trailers, https://www.txdmv.gov/motor-carriers/commercial-fleet-registration/token-trailers)

## Pricing

- Single yard: $189 per month
- Lessor: $540 per month
- Fleet network: $1,290 per month

## Questions

### What is trailer leasing fleet management?

It is the record a lessor keeps of every trailer it owns: which written lease covers it, who is holding it, when its periodic inspection expires and what condition it was in at each handover. 49 CFR 376.12 sets what the lease must say and 49 CFR 396.17 sets the 12 month inspection window.

### What must a written trailer lease contain?

49 CFR 376.12 lists the clauses: the parties, the exact start and end, exclusive possession by the carrier, how compensation is calculated, payment within 15 days of the delivery documents, every charge back item, who carries which insurance, and the terms of any escrow fund.

### Who is responsible for the annual inspection on a leased trailer?

The carrier or the intermodal equipment provider that controls the unit. 49 CFR 396.17 lets them inspect it themselves or use a commercial garage or fleet leasing company as their agent, provided the person doing it meets 49 CFR 396.19.

### How long do inspection records have to be kept?

The periodic inspection report stays on file for 14 months under 49 CFR 396.21, where the vehicle is housed or maintained. Driver vehicle inspection reports and the repair certifications run three months under 49 CFR 396.11.

### Does this replace our maintenance shop system?

No. The shop keeps its work orders. This is the ownership and lease side of the same unit, so when a trailer comes back you have the lease, the inspection history and the defect trail in one place instead of three.

## Sources

- [49 CFR 376.12, lease requirements](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/376.12)
- [49 CFR 376.11, general leasing requirements](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/376.11)
- [49 CFR 396.17, periodic inspection](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.17)
- [49 CFR 396.21, periodic inspection recordkeeping](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.21)
- [49 CFR 396.3, inspection, repair and maintenance records](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.3)
- [49 CFR 396.19, inspector qualifications](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/49/396.19)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/