Shippers are tightening carrier and broker vetting in the wake of the Montgomery ruling, and RXO is turning its excess liability coverage of more than $100 million into a front-line sales advantage as enterprise customers consolidate providers, according to FreightWaves.
Insurance and Financial Stability Open Enterprise Doors
RXO CEO Drew Wilkerson told FreightWaves that financial stability and insurance coverage now open every enterprise customer conversation, a shift that accelerated sharply over the past few weeks. Wilkerson said he only knows of 2 of the top 5 to 10 brokers that have excess liability of $100 million or more, adding that the field of providers capable of serving large enterprise shippers at scale is narrowing quickly. The coverage threshold is not something competitors can build overnight, he said.
"We don't want to just scrape by on this. We don't want to just scrape by for our customers. We want to make sure that we've got more than enough to be there for our customers." — Drew Wilkerson, CEO, RXO
The liability discussion comes as RXO reported truckload spot mix of 42% of volume, with spot loads rising 900 basis points sequentially and roughly 1,000 basis points quarter over quarter — the kind of flex the company had promised investors since its spin from XPO, FreightWaves reported. Wilkerson attributed the gross profit per load improvement to that spot mix shift, along with a pickup in higher-margin project and mini-bid freight and technology-driven productivity gains.
Spot Mix Drives Margin Gains
| Metric | Q2 figure | Change / outlook |
|---|---|---|
| Truckload spot mix | 42% of volume | Spot loads +900 bps sequentially; ~1,000 bps QoQ |
| Truckload volume | Up 2% y/y in Q2 | Low-to-mid single-digit y/y growth expected in Q3 |
| Tender rejections (SONAR) | 14%–16% | Well below 25%–30% in a robust upcycle |
| Excess liability coverage | Exceeds $100 million | Only 2 of top 5–10 brokers match |
Truckload volume was up 2% year over year in the second quarter, with low-to-mid single-digit year-over-year growth expected in the third quarter, according to the company. FreightWaves reported that Wilkerson attributed the gross profit per load improvement to the spot mix shift, higher-margin project and mini-bid freight, and technology-driven productivity gains.
Technology and Staffing Built for Peak Season
On the technology side, RXO rolled out a spot-quote agentic email tool that Wilkerson said allowed employees to process five times the number of orders quarter over quarter, according to FreightWaves. He said the best-performing technology investments check all three of the company’s internal criteria: growing volume, increasing margin, and improving productivity. An AI agent now reviews installation photos from independent contract drivers in the last-mile business, though Wilkerson noted that tool primarily addresses productivity rather than margin or volume.
Wilkerson said the company keeps staffing levels calibrated to absorb 15% to 20% volume growth overnight, a posture it has maintained for the past three years heading into peak season. He described the current freight recovery as early-stage, pointing to tender rejections running at 14% to 16% on SONAR — well below the 25% to 30% levels seen in a robust upcycle — while demand remains down year over year according to Cass data, FreightWaves reported. He said the company is two years into integrating the Coyote acquisition and is now focused entirely on innovation rather than integration.
Demand Signals and Customer Retention
On food and beverage, Wilkerson pushed back slightly on the notion that the sector is a drag, saying RXO saw year-over-year increases with those customers — though he credited market share gains rather than underlying volume growth, according to FreightWaves. He cited two factors weighing on the category broadly: GLP-1 drug adoption reducing consumption and deportations shrinking the U.S. consumer base. RXO’s top customers have been with the company an average of 16 years, Wilkerson noted, a relationship depth he said is central to winning outsized spot and project volume as shippers pare down their provider lists.
Watch list
- Third-quarter truckload growth: RXO expects low-to-mid single-digit year-over-year growth, following 2% y/y growth in Q2, according to FreightWaves.
- Peak season staffing: The company maintains staffing calibrated to absorb 15% to 20% volume growth overnight, a posture held for three years heading into peak season.
- Recovery signals: Tender rejections on SONAR at 14%–16% remain well below the 25%–30% range of a robust upcycle, while Cass data shows demand still down year over year.
- Provider consolidation: With only two brokers in the top 5–10 carrying $100 million-plus excess liability, Wilkerson said the field of providers for large enterprise shippers is narrowing quickly.
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