Trucking company equipment: buy, lease, or lease-purchase?
Your first truck is the biggest check a new carrier writes, and it locks in more than a payment: the rules your company follows, the filings it owes, and who controls your settlements.
Written by Gabriel Gonzalez
Your first truck, in numbers
Trucking company equipment starts with a truck rated for the freight you'll haul, because its weight rating, axles, and model year decide which rules apply. Then choose how to hold it: buying builds equity and a tax deduction, leasing saves cash, and a carrier lease-purchase ties your payments to that carrier's settlements.
I have spent more than 22 years at Simplex, nearly 16 of them as COO, and I now lead our revenue strategy. The truck is usually a new carrier's largest purchase, and how you acquire it decides more than the monthly payment. It decides which rules attach to your company, what you can deduct, and who controls your pay.
This guide covers choosing the equipment, buying versus leasing versus lease-purchase, and checking a used truck before you sign. The filings that come first, from the EIN to your authority, are in our step-by-step guide to starting a trucking company.
The full briefing, read aloud
7 chapters. Select one to jump to it.
Generated with AI text-to-speech from this article's key insights, in order, rather than reading it word for word. Chapter times come from a transcript of the audio. The article itself was written and reviewed by Gabriel Gonzalez.
Key takeaways
The rating decides the rules
At 10,001 pounds an interstate truck falls under federal safety rules; at 26,001 pounds its driver needs a CDL; over 26,000 pounds or with 3+ axles it needs IRP plates and IFTA.
Buying carries the deduction
Qualified property acquired and placed in service after January 19, 2025 can take a 100% special depreciation allowance. Leased equipment generally can't be depreciated.
A lease-purchase must be in writing
If you lease your truck to a carrier while paying for it, the lease must say you aren't required to buy equipment from the carrier and must list every deduction.
A used truck brings its gaps
Get the maintenance records before you pay, run the VIN for open recalls, confirm a passed inspection from the last 12 months, and settle Form 2290 for the period.
Older trucks move cost into repairs
Repair and maintenance costs rose 8.6% across the industry in 2025, so a cheaper truck can cost more per mile.
In this articleContents
What trucking company equipment do you need first?
A new trucking company needs a power unit rated for the freight it will haul, plus a trailer if that unit is a tractor. Pick the freight first and the truck second, because the truck's rating, axles, and model year decide which rules your company must follow.
Federal safety rules start at 10,001 pounds: under 49 CFR 390.5T, a vehicle in interstate commerce rated or weighing 10,001 pounds or more is a commercial motor vehicle. Each step up adds more.
| If your equipment | What it adds | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Is rated 10,001 lb or more | Federal safety rules, and $750,000 minimum liability for for-hire general freight | 49 CFR 390.5T, 387.9 |
| Is rated 26,001 lb or more, or is a 26,001 lb combination towing over 10,000 lb | CDL drivers, and a drug and alcohol testing program for them | 49 CFR 383.91, 382.103 |
| Is over 26,000 lb or has 3+ axles, and runs in 2+ states | IRP apportioned plates and an IFTA fuel tax license | IRP Plan; IFTA |
| Has a taxable gross weight of 55,000 lb or more | Form 2290 heavy vehicle use tax every period | IRS Form 2290 |
| Hauls hazardous materials | Liability minimums of $1 million, or $5 million for certain bulk loads | 49 CFR 387.9 |
| Was built before model year 2000, per the VIN on its registration | Paper logs allowed instead of an ELD | 49 CFR 395.8 |
| Is a heavy-duty diesel that will run in California | A 2010 or newer engine for nearly all trucks | CARB Truck and Bus Regulation |
The CDL line costs the most to cross, because it brings the testing program with it, including for an owner-operator who drives alone. Our guide to CDL vs non-CDL requirements compares the two setups.
Trailers are simpler. Under the IRP Plan, a trailer properly registered in one jurisdiction gets full reciprocity in the others, so you apportion the power unit, not each trailer.
Should you buy, lease, or lease-purchase your first truck?
Buy if you have the cash or credit and want the equity and the deduction. Lease if you need to keep cash for operating costs. Treat a carrier lease-purchase as a job and a loan in one contract, and read it that way.
| Option | What you get | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Buy, with cash or a loan | Equity in the truck, and depreciation deductions | Every repair is yours, and the down payment comes out of operating cash |
| Lease from a leasing company | Less cash up front; the lease sets who maintains the truck | You generally can't depreciate it; read mileage and return terms |
| Lease-purchase through a carrier | A truck without a bank loan, paid from your settlements | Your payments depend on that carrier's freight; read what happens if the lease ends early |
The tax difference is real. IRS Publication 946 says the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reinstated a 100% special depreciation allowance for qualified property acquired and placed in service after January 19, 2025, and that it can apply to certain used property. For tax years beginning in 2026, the Section 179 deduction limit is $2,560,000. Leased equipment generally can't be depreciated, because you don't hold the incidents of ownership. Ask your tax preparer how this fits your entity before you sign.
What must a carrier lease-purchase spell out?
If you lease your truck to a carrier while you pay it off, federal leasing rules apply. The lease must be in writing, and 49 CFR 376.12 requires it to state:
- No forced purchase. You aren't required to buy or rent products, equipment, or services from the carrier as a condition of the lease, and the terms of any purchase contract that lets the carrier deduct payments from your pay.
- Every chargeback. Each item the carrier may pay and then deduct from your settlement, how each amount is computed, and your right to the documents behind it.
- Your pay and its timing. The compensation, on the lease or an attached addendum delivered before the first trip, and payment within 15 days after you submit the delivery documents.
- Escrow terms. The amount, what it can cover, an accounting, interest at least quarterly, and its return no later than 45 days after the lease ends.
The lease must also say who buys insurance beyond the carrier's public liability, such as bobtail coverage. Our guide to truck insurance for owner-operators covers that side, and what changes when you leave a lease.
What should you check before you buy a used truck?
Check the paperwork as hard as the engine. A used truck can carry an open recall, a lapsed inspection, a tax period to settle, or an engine California won't register, and once you own it, each one is your problem.
Step 1: Match the VIN to the title and registration
Confirm the VIN on the truck matches the title and registration, and note the model year it shows. That year decides whether paper logs are allowed instead of an ELD, under 49 CFR 395.8, and whether the truck can run in California.
Step 2: Run the VIN for open recalls
NHTSA's recall search takes the 17-character VIN and shows unrepaired safety recalls. It doesn't show recalls more than 15 years old or some from small manufacturers, so ask the seller too.
Step 3: Get the maintenance records before you pay
A carrier only has to keep a truck's inspection, repair, and maintenance records for 6 months after the truck leaves its control, under 49 CFR 396.3. Ask for copies before closing, then start your own file on day one. Our post on FMCSA vehicle maintenance records shows what it must hold.
Step 4: Confirm a passed inspection from the last 12 months
You can't use a truck unless it passed a periodic inspection in the preceding 12 months, with proof on the vehicle, and the inspector must meet federal qualifications (49 CFR 396.17 and 396.19). A pre-purchase inspection by a qualified mechanic also tells you the repair bill while you can still negotiate.
Step 5: Settle Form 2290 for the period
For a truck of 55,000 pounds or more, get a signed, dated statement from the seller on whether the tax for the period was paid or suspended, and keep it. Then file your own Form 2290 by the last day of the month after your first use. If the seller paid and your first use is in the month of sale, your tax skips that month. Our Form 2290 guide covers the return.
How does the truck you choose change your cost per mile?
The price tag matters less than the cost per mile over the years you run the truck. A cheaper, older truck moves money from the payment line to the repair line.
ATRI, the trucking industry's research institute, found every major cost line rose in 2025. The largest gains were tolls at 13.2%, repair and maintenance at 8.6%, driver benefits, and tires. Average truck age and annual mileage also rose as carriers cut capacity through the downturn.
So price the truck the way you'll pay for it. Before you sign, list what comes due before the first invoice: the down payment or lease deposit, physical damage coverage for the truck itself, plates, Form 2290, the inspection and any repairs it finds, and an ELD. If customers pay on terms, decide now how you'll bridge the gap; trucking factoring is one option, at a cost.
How Simplex helps you put your first truck to work
We handle the filings around your authority, the credentials your truck needs, and the coverage that protects the truck itself.
Authority and filings
Our trucking authority packages cover the USDOT number, MC authority, BOC-3, and UCR for a new carrier.
Plates, fuel tax, and permits
Our trucking permit services identify the IRP, IFTA, and state permits for every state on your route and file them for you.
Coverage for the truck
Our physical damage insurance protects the truck itself, which your liability filing doesn't.
Frequently asked questions
What equipment do I need to start a trucking company?+
Is it better to buy or lease a truck when starting a trucking company?+
What is a lease-purchase in trucking?+
Does a used truck need a new DOT inspection?+
Do I owe Form 2290 on a used truck?+
Where this information comes from
The requirements below come from federal regulation, the IRS, NHTSA, CARB, and the IRP and IFTA agreements, checked on October 20, 2026.
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1
eCFR — 49 CFR 376.12
What a lease of your truck to a carrier must state: purchase terms, chargebacks, 15-day payment, and escrow return within 45 days.
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2
eCFR — 49 CFR Part 396
Maintenance record retention (396.3), the 12-month periodic inspection (396.17), and inspector qualifications (396.19).
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3
eCFR — 49 CFR 383.91
The 26,001-pound CDL vehicle groups for single trucks and combinations.
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4
eCFR — 49 CFR 387.9
Minimum liability: $750,000 for for-hire general freight, $1 million and $5 million for hazardous materials.
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5
IRS — Publication 946, How To Depreciate Property
The 100% special depreciation allowance after January 19, 2025, the 2026 Section 179 limit, and leased property.
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6
IRS — Instructions for Form 2290
The 55,000-pound threshold, the due date after first use, and the rules for used vehicles bought during the period.
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7
NHTSA — Check for Recalls
VIN search for unrepaired safety recalls, and what it doesn't show.
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8
CARB — Truck and Bus Regulation
The 2010-or-newer engine requirement for heavy-duty diesel trucks operating in California.
Written by
Gabriel Gonzalez
Chief Revenue Officer, Simplex Group
Chief Revenue Officer at Simplex Group, with more than 22 years at the company, including nearly 16 years as Chief Operating Officer. His background combines revenue strategy with deep operational experience, giving him a strong perspective on how compliance, risk, permits, cash flow, and operational readiness affect a carrier's ability to grow profitably.
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Choose the truck that fits the business
The right first truck matches your freight, your cash, and the rules you're ready to run. The wrong one locks in costs and obligations you didn't plan for.
If you want a second look at the filings, coverage, and credentials a new truck needs, talk to our team before you sign.