Return loads and backloads across the UK
A return load (also called a backload) is a consignment carried on a vehicle that would otherwise drive back empty after a delivery. RetailABC matches both sides across the UK: businesses that need goods moved, and hauliers or couriers with spare capacity. Vehicles range from small courier vans and Lutons to 7.5-tonne and 18-tonne rigids and 44-tonne artics.
Problems this solves
- Paying for a full dedicated vehicle to move a part load
- A one-off movement between two distant sites
- Pallet quantities that fall between a courier and a full load
- A lorry or van driving home empty after every delivery
- Stock or equipment that needs moving after a clearance or auction
How it works
- 01Tell us the collection and delivery postcodes, the goods and your dates
- 02We match the movement against vehicles already travelling that route
- 03You receive a price with the vehicle type and collection window
- 04Collection is booked and confirmed with you
- 05The load is delivered and delivery is confirmed back to you
What is a return load?
After a haulier or courier delivers a load, the vehicle usually has to travel back to its base or to its next job. If it travels empty, the operator is paying for fuel, driver time and road costs with no income. A return load is a consignment carried on that journey back.
What is a backload?
A backload is the same thing under a different name — the term is common in haulage, while “return load” is more common with couriers and shippers. Both describe using spare capacity on a vehicle that is already making the trip. Part loads and shared loads work on the same principle when a vehicle has room left on its outbound leg.
Why vehicles travel empty — and why that lowers your cost
Most freight flows one way. A lorry delivering from the Midlands to Scotland often has nothing to bring back. Because the operator is making that journey anyway, filling the space is worth more to them than running empty, which is why a backload is usually cheaper than booking a dedicated vehicle for the same route.
The trade-off is timing: the price advantage comes from fitting your goods around a journey that already exists.
Types of loads and vehicles
Palletised goods, boxed stock, machinery and equipment, retail and ecommerce stock, and mixed consignments are typical. Tell us about anything that is fragile, oversized, needs a tail lift or has special handling needs so the right vehicle is matched.
Vehicle sizes cover small vans and courier consignments, Luton vans, 7.5-tonne and 18-tonne rigids, and 44-tonne articulated lorries for full loads.
Coverage, one-off jobs and regular lanes
Movements are arranged across the UK. You can book a single one-off move, or tell us about a regular route — for example a weekly delivery — so it can be matched on an ongoing basis.
Hauliers and couriers: fill your empty legs
If you run vans or lorries and regularly come back empty, tell us your vehicle type, base and usual routes. We will put suitable return loads to you when they match.
What RetailABC handles
- Return loads and backloads
- Part loads and shared loads
- Palletised freight, from one pallet to a full trailer
- Courier-sized consignments on vans
- One-off movements and regular lanes
- Loads for hauliers and couriers with spare capacity
Who it suits
- Manufacturers and distributors
- Retailers and ecommerce businesses moving stock between sites
- Businesses relocating equipment
- Hauliers and owner-drivers running empty return legs
- Courier firms with part-empty vans
Pricing and timescales
How it is priced
Priced per job on the route, the size and weight of the load, the vehicle needed and how flexible your dates are. Flexibility is what makes a backload cheaper than a dedicated vehicle. We will not quote before we have the postcodes and load details.
Timescales
Some jobs can be matched quickly when a vehicle is already on the lane; others take longer. A wider collection window improves both price and availability. Time-critical deliveries may need a dedicated vehicle, and we will tell you if so.
Who delivers it
Movements are arranged through our specialist transport operation. You deal with RetailABC throughout — the enquiry, the contact and the paperwork stay with us.
About our specialist operationsQuestions buyers actually ask
- What is the difference between a return load and a backload?
- Nothing practical — both mean carrying goods on a vehicle that would otherwise travel empty, usually on its way back from a delivery.
- Are return loads cheaper than a dedicated vehicle?
- Usually, because the vehicle is making the journey anyway. The saving depends on the route and how flexible your dates are.
- Is it slower than a dedicated vehicle?
- It can be, because it depends on matching an existing journey. Fixed-time deliveries usually need a dedicated vehicle.
- Can you handle courier-sized consignments?
- Yes. Van and courier return loads cover smaller consignments as well as pallets and full loads.
- I am a haulier with spare capacity — can I register?
- Yes. Use the “I have vehicle capacity” option on this page with your vehicle type, base and usual routes.
- What do you need to quote?
- Collection and delivery postcodes, what the goods are, dimensions, weight, pallet count, collection date and delivery deadline.