What to Do When Your Freight SaaS Crashes During High Volume — Emergency Protocols That Carriers Used To Stay Operational
4 min read
Everything is going great. Orders are booming, trucks are moving, and you’re riding the wave of a busy shipping season. Then—bam! Your Freight SaaS (Software as a Service) crashes. Panic sets in. Phones start ringing, dispatchers scramble, and drivers are stuck waiting. What now?
TL;DR:
If your Freight SaaS crashes during a high-volume period, stay calm. Use analog backups like printed route logs, call lists, and spreadsheets. Communicate clearly with your teams and your customers. Stay flexible and fall back on emergency protocols your team set up in advance—or will set up now after reading this!
First, Don’t Panic – It Happens to the Best of Us
Software fails. Even big players like Netflix and Amazon experience outages. A Freight SaaS going down during peak season is stressful—but survivable. Carriers that kept rolling had plans. Let’s walk through how they stayed operational and how you can, too.
Step 1: Flip the Manual Switch
Think old school. When your TMS (transportation management system) or load board crashes, digital tools are off the table. You need to go analog:
- Pull out the whiteboard. Use it to assign drivers and routes manually.
- Print your backups. A good policy is printing route instructions and daily load sheets every morning during high-volume periods.
- Use paper logs or Excel sheets. Keep offline copies of customer addresses, phone numbers, and delivery windows.
These aren’t glamorous, but they work.
Step 2: Communication is Everything
If your system crashes, your team feels it—and so do your drivers and clients. Communication keeps everyone calm and rolling.
For Dispatchers:
- Switch to text and phone instructions for drivers.
- Use group messages for bulk route updates.
For Customers:
- Be proactive. Send a heads-up email explaining the delay or changes.
- Include an emergency contact number in case they have urgent info.
Carriers that stayed in close touch with shippers during outages kept trust—and repeat business.
Step 3: Set Up a Command Center
When tech fails, the human brain takes over. Create a central hub to make decisions and keep your crew organized.
- Assign a lead dispatcher. This person makes final calls on reroutes or load changes.
- Designate a “tech liaison.” They stay in touch with your SaaS provider for real-time updates.
- Have a “runner.” Someone tasked with printing, delivering, or communicating between departments manually.
Think of it as your temporary mission control while the system is down.
Step 4: Use Redundancy Wisely
The best carriers had backups ready. Not just plans—but tools. Here are examples they used:
- Offline apps: Some routing and map apps work without Wi-Fi. Drivers used them when navigation systems failed.
- Secondary software: A few fleets kept a lighter dispatch tool on standby, just in case.
- Spare phones and tablets: When devices stopped syncing, they swapped them out or used mobile hotspots.
Bonus tip? If your main SaaS doesn’t offer offline capability, ask them why not. Or consider a second option that does during peak seasons.
Step 5: Prioritize High-Value Loads
If you can’t deliver everything when things crash, be strategic. Here’s how carriers stayed profitable and efficient:
- Identify priority loads. These include expiring goods, medical supplies, or high-paying customers.
- Push back lower-priority items. Let those clients know you’ll reschedule them once full capacity returns.
- Use simple codes. Color-code printed load sheets so teams quickly spot time-sensitive cargo.
Being selective doesn’t mean abandoning customers—it means optimizing so you can help more of them in the long run.
Real Carrier Hacks That Worked
1. Carrier ABC: Mobile Simplicity
ABC Logistics kept a PDF version of each route and load plan saved on tablets. When their Freight SaaS crashed, drivers still had everything they needed—even without cell signal.
2. Carrier XYZ: The “Shadow Dispatcher”
During peak weeks, XYZ assigned a backup dispatcher who manually mirrored the digital schedule on paper. It saved hours of confusion when their system went down unexpectedly mid-week.
3. Courier QRS: “Back to the Radios”
When everything else failed, QRS used old CB radios and walkie-talkies to guide trucks. It was chaotic, but surprisingly effective!
Backup Checklist
Here’s a checklist to prepare for the next unexpected Freight SaaS crash:
- Daily printed copies of load sheets and routes
- Phone tree for dispatchers and drivers
- Offline access to critical customer info
- Manual scheduling whiteboard or clipboard system
- Pre-written customer update messages
- Dedicated emergency operations team
Tape that list near dispatch!
What to Ask Your Freight SaaS Vendor After a Crash
Once you’re back online, don’t just move on. Find out what caused the crash. Good vendors will be transparent. Ask:
- What happened, and why?
- How long was it down for everyone?
- What’s being done to prevent this in the future?
- Is there a manual mode or downloadable backup for emergencies?
If they don’t have clear answers, it might be time to shop around.
Normalize “Crash Drills” Like Fire Drills
Smart carriers treat system crashes like emergency response training. Schedule quarterly or bi-annual “tech blackout drills.” Here’s what that might look like:
- Simulate a crash by turning the SaaS off for an hour.
- Have dispatchers run the operation with paper-only tools.
- Review what worked—and what didn’t—afterward.
This prepares your team to act fast under pressure.
Final Thoughts – Stay Human
Technology is amazing. But your drivers, dispatchers, and customer reps are the real heart of your freight company. Make sure they don’t rely only on software. Train them, trust them, and equip them with real-world tools.
When the Freight SaaS crashes, the companies that win are the ones that already knew what to do—because they practiced, planned… and maybe printed a few things.
Remember: crashes happen. But with grit, paper, and teamwork, you’ll keep those wheels turning.
