The short answer
Why fleets end up with stacked advances
A carrier invoices a shipper and waits 30 to 45 days. Meanwhile fuel is bought daily, a tire blowout costs thousands, and drivers expect payroll on Friday. One advance covers a repair. A second covers the next one. Soon two daily debits come out of an account that only refills when invoices clear.
The problem is timing, not volume. A refinance does not change your rates per mile. It changes how much leaves the account each day while you wait to get paid. See MFE trucking MCA refinance for how MFE reviews these files.
Who this fits, and who it does not
It fits: regional and local carriers, dump and hauling outfits, last-mile delivery fleets and owner-operators running steady lanes, with consistent deposits and existing advances that have been paid on time.
It does not fit, or is harder:
- Long-haul trucking. Many funders restrict it, so an offer is not something anyone can promise.
- A fleet whose revenue has dropped sharply, where a longer term only delays the problem.
- A carrier that would take the refinance and then add new advances on top. That rebuilds the same stack.
Check what your business qualifies for
Merchant Fund Express reviews trucking mca refinance requests from $5,000 to $5,000,000. Scores from 500 are considered, and same-day decisions are common on complete files.
Check funding options with Merchant Fund ExpressHow a refinance works, step by step
- You list every open advance: funder, remaining balance and daily or weekly payment.
- MFE reviews 3 to 4 months of bank statements, ID, a voided check and the application, plus payoff letters for each position.
- If approved, the new advance pays the old balances directly. Any remaining amount goes to your account.
- You make one payment on the new schedule. The old debits stop once payoffs are confirmed.
When several positions are open, MFE often points to a refinance rather than another advance. Related reading: MCA consolidation.
Illustrative example: a six-truck regional carrier
Illustrative example. These figures are illustrations to show the arithmetic, not offers. Real pricing, terms and amounts come only from a reviewed application.
Assumptions: about $120,000 in monthly deposits, 4 years open, two open advances, 22 business days per month, 52 weeks per year.
| Item | Before | After refinance |
|---|---|---|
| Open balances | $28,000 + $17,000 = $45,000 | Paid off by the new advance |
| Payment | $700 + $500 = $1,200 per business day | $2,070 per week for 40 weeks |
| Monthly outflow | $1,200 x 22 = $26,400 | $2,070 x 52 / 12 = $8,970 |
| New advance | $60,000 at a 1.38 factor | |
| Total repayment | $45,000 left on old advances | $60,000 x 1.38 = $82,800 |
| Net cash received | $60,000 minus $45,000 payoffs minus $1,500 fee = $13,500 |
Read both sides honestly. The monthly outflow drops by $17,430, which pays for fuel and a brake job. But the carrier now owes $82,800 instead of $45,000, in exchange for more time and $13,500 of new cash. The new amount is 0.5x monthly revenue, at the low end of MFE's illustrative range.
Funding brings customers. Is your website ready for them?
Once daily debits stop draining fuel money, the next load comes from shippers and dispatchers who look you up before they book. A simple site with your lanes, equipment types, authority details and a quote request helps them say yes. Cheap Cheap Websites builds professional sites from $399, with Website Care at $30/month for hosting, backups and quick edits when you add trucks or routes.
What to prepare
- 3 to 4 months of business bank statements showing settlements from shippers or load boards.
- ID, voided check and short application.
- Payoff letters or current balances for every advance.
- Your operating authority details and a short description of lanes, regional or local.
- Factoring agreement, if receivables are already factored, since that affects what can be pledged.
When something else is better
If your problem is waiting on shippers and you have no advances yet, invoice factoring on real, undisputed freight bills may solve it at the source. If a truck needs replacing, equipment financing matched to its life usually beats an advance. If one advance is nearly paid off, finishing it may cost less than refinancing. For the full industry picture see trucking business funding.
Related funding guides
Cheap Cheap Websites builds websites. It does not lend or make funding decisions. Funding is offered by our funding partner, Merchant Fund Express, and every request is subject to its review and approval. Figures on this page are illustrations, not offers. Updated October 15, 2026.