Four calls. Zero wrenches turned.
If you've run roadside for more than a week, you've lived at least one of these. The tech drives out, burns the fuel and the hour, and comes home with nothing to bill. None of it was bad luck. Each one traces back to a question nobody asked when the call came in.
The locked gate
Gate's shut. He texts for the code. Read. Typing... and the dots vanish.
Ask before you roll · Q5 + Q6Gate, guard shack or keypad, and the code. Plus the name and number of whoever opens it after hours.
The empty lot
"Unit 4312. Exit 52 lot. Driver waiting." The lot's empty. No unit, no driver, no note.
Ask before you roll · Q12 + callbackIs the driver staying with the truck? Then a 30-second callback right before you roll: still there, same side of the road, nobody towed it.
The questionable pin
The map says "You have arrived." He's standing in the middle of a field.
Ask before you roll · Q1 + Q3Highway, direction and the nearest mile marker, plus a live location share from the driver's phone. A typed pin is a guess.
The missing driver
He bangs on the cab, climbs up, looks in. Empty. Calls the number. It rings out.
Ask before you roll · Q11 + Q12The driver's name and a cell that will ring right now. Call it back once before you hang up. And where are the keys?
Everything dispatch gets before a truck rolls
Twenty questions in six sections: where exactly, getting in, which unit, who's there, what's wrong, who pays. Plus the 30-second callback to make before the truck leaves the yard, and the red flags that mean don't send it yet. Built for whoever answers the phone, from the owner at midnight to the new hire on day two.
Plus an 8-question desk card to tape next to the phone.
- 01 Where exactlyHighway, direction, and the nearest mile marker?
- 01 Where exactly · Fail #3Can you share your live location from your phone?
- 02 Getting in · Fail #1Gate, guard shack or keypad? What's the code?
Get the checklist
Tell us where to send it. Both files are yours the second you hit the button, and a copy lands in your inbox.
- Roadside Call Intake Checklist20 questions, the 30-second callback and the red flags. 2-page PDF
- Dispatcher Desk Card8 questions, every call. Tape it next to the phone. 1-page PDF
Tape on the wall works. Until the night shift forgets it.
The checklist fixes the next call. If you want every call taken the same way, no matter who picks up, take a look at MetaFleet: AI-native field-service software built for mobile diesel and heavy-equipment shops.
Book a demo Free. No commitment. Bring your worst roadside call story.