7 Tips for Choosing a Diesel Fuel Delivery Company

Getting the fuel your company needs to maintain your fleet can make or break your business. If you don’t get products to customers on time, you can count on them to head to your competitors and leave negative feedback about your business.

A diesel fuel delivery service can reduce risk and improve your company’s efficiency — but only if you pick the right partner. And with over 13,000 fuel dealers in the United States, finding the right partner isn’t easy. Use the information below when looking at fuel delivery options to find the best choice for your business.

1. Verify the Service Area

Understanding the service area of a fuel delivery company is essential. This may not be a big deal if you only take shipments to your company’s primary location. But things change when your vehicles are on the road.

What happens if a truck needs fuel and is out of the delivery range of your provider? In these situations, you may be challenged getting fuel to your trucks.

Make sure you understand the range you can expect your delivery company to deliver to. They should deliver to your home location and along any routes your drivers take — and if you deliver out of the area, see if the company you hire has a large enough presence to reach those areas.

Otherwise, you may end up needing to work with several delivery companies.

2. Look at the Types of Fuel

You have more to consider when looking at the types of fuel available than general diesel. There are also several types of diesel available, which means that the company you work with needs to meet those requirements.

Check with your operations team to see what type of fuel they use. Depending on the types of vehicles your drivers use, you may also have different fuel types.

Once you have a list of your requirements, check with your delivery company options to see what they can offer. Here are a few examples to get you started:

• Petroleum diesel
• Synthetic diesel
• Biodiesel

There are also variations that depend on your vehicle specs. There are different types of diesel for low-speed vehicles, cold weather, warm weather, and other factors.

3. Consider the Delivery Timeframe

Yes, it’s great when you find a company that can deliver the type of fuel you need and wherever you need it. The question is, how long will it take for your fuel to arrive?

This isn’t a problem if you schedule regular deliveries at your main building. Everything is coming on a schedule, so you don’t need to worry about deliveries running late.

But what happens if an emergency causes you to lose fuel? In cases like that, you need delivery quickly to return your operations to working order.

Make sure the delivery company you hire can meet those needs. Look at the timeframes for emergency deliveries and if they suit you.

4. List Your Needs

One fuel delivery service may work for one business and not another. Each company has unique needs, so you must find a provider to meet your requirements.

Take fuel volume, for instance. A smaller operation may not be able to fulfill your needs if you require a lot of fuel. You’ll need to work with a larger supplier in this situation.

Some companies also offer bonus services — such as tank inspection and other benefits. Look at those benefits to see if they make one supplier worth using over another.

5. Look at the Costs

Costs will be a significant factor in your choice of fuel delivery services. If you purchase a lot of fuel, you’ll pay a lot of cash for it. The last thing you want to do is be overcharged.

Get pricing information from as many services as possible. Look how much they charge by default. If they offer pricing discounts, look at how much of a discount you receive at different levels.

This will give you enough information to see which delivery service offers the best value and extra services.

6. Examine Customer Service

Good delivery terms aren’t enough for a delivery company. You want a company you enjoy working with and doesn’t cause problems. Without excellent customer service, that won’t happen.

Ask a company how they handle requests and their response time. You want someone to be available quickly to address whatever concerns you have.

If possible, get everything in writing. This will guarantee a level of service and not leave you surprised after deciding to work with a company.

7. Verify the Reputation

The final step to vetting a fuel delivery service is to check a company’s reputation. You don’t want to only rely on what a business says about itself. You also want to hear from previous clients.

Check for reviews online or reach out to contacts you know in the fleet transportation industry. Use your time doing this to learn the good and bad about a company.

Well-regarded companies like fuellogic.net will have plenty of positive feedback to back up what they say.

Find the Right Diesel Fuel Delivery Company

Keeping your fleet fueled when on the road is no easy task. Even if you have a good setup at home to fuel your trucks, you never know what can happen on the road that will cause disruptions and a waste of diesel.

That’s why hiring a diesel fuel delivery service makes so much sense. You get a partner willing to go the distance to provide your company with the fuel it needs. Use the guide above to vet your fuel delivery options and find a company that will help you keep your vehicles on the road.

Are you interested in more advice on how to optimize your fleet and business? Check out more business tips on the blog to learn more great tactics.