Current freight
Castle Cary → Enniskillen
44 t Artic
·
7 Oct 2026
UK return loads & backloads
Find return loads UK-wide and backloads for your route
Search current freight that could fit your route home, fill spare vehicle capacity and turn empty running into paid haulage work.
LoadDock is free for hauliers to join and quote. Browse the public freight board before you create an account.
Search freight around your route
Enter a town or postcode near where your vehicle will be available.
You can refine by radius, collection date, vehicle and body type on
the live load board.
What are return loads and backloads?
A return load is freight carried on a journey where a vehicle would otherwise return empty or travel with spare capacity. In UK haulage, the terms return load, backload and backhaul are often used for the same basic idea: finding suitable freight for the return leg.
For a haulier, that can mean earning revenue from miles that would otherwise produce nothing. For a shipper, it can mean reaching transport capacity that is already positioned nearby or travelling in the right direction.
LoadDock brings those two sides together. Hauliers can search current UK freight by location and vehicle requirement, while shippers can publish work for transport companies to quote directly.
Looking for haulage work?
- Search by town or postcode
- Refine by collection radius
- Filter vehicle and body requirements
- View freight before signing up
- Quote directly once registered
Current UK freight opportunities
A selection of current loads from the public LoadDock freight board.
How to find a useful return load
1. Start where you finish
Search around your destination
Use the town or postcode where your vehicle becomes available rather than searching the whole country.
2. Check the fit
Match route and equipment
Check collection timing, delivery direction, vehicle type and body requirements before deciding whether the freight works.
3. Quote the work
Price the return leg properly
A backload still needs to make commercial sense. Quote based on the actual mileage, time and operating cost involved.
Return loads for HGVs, vans and haulage fleets
Return-load opportunities are not limited to one type of operator. Owner drivers, small fleets and larger transport companies can all use spare capacity more effectively when the route, timing and equipment requirements line up.
LoadDock supports freight searches around the information that matters operationally: pickup area, collection date, vehicle requirement and destination. If you are specifically looking for larger vehicle work, see our UK HGV loads page.
Why reducing empty running matters
Empty miles still consume driver time, fuel and vehicle capacity. Finding suitable freight on a return journey can improve utilisation without pretending that every available load is automatically worth taking.
The useful backload is the one that fits the vehicle, route and schedule at a workable rate. LoadDock is designed to make those opportunities easier to discover and compare.
Return loads & backloads: common questions
What is a return load?
Freight carried on a journey where a vehicle might otherwise return empty or have spare capacity.
Are backloads and return loads the same?
They are commonly used interchangeably in UK haulage. Backhaul is another term you may see for the return leg.
Do hauliers pay to quote?
LoadDock is free for hauliers to join and quote for freight, with no LoadDock commission charged to the haulier on won work.