How many hours does your team spend waiting for carrier replies?

Key Takeaways

Waiting for carrier replies isn't idle time. It's checking inboxes, sending reminders, calling and updating people while nothing moves.
Measure it with 4 numbers: requests sent, time to first reply, follow-ups per request and requests escalated.
Most of the hours hide in follow-ups, not in the first email.
Wilson, by Cartage, is an AI logistics agent that sends carrier requests and follows up by email and phone on a schedule the company sets, then escalates when a carrier still doesn't answer.
Every message and call is recorded, so the team can see where time goes.

Why is waiting for carrier replies so hard to see?

A coordinator sends 30 quote and status requests on Monday. By Tuesday, 12 are still open. She checks her inbox every hour, sends 8 reminders, makes 5 calls and tells sales twice that she's "waiting to hear back." None of that shows up in any report.

Waiting for carrier replies is hard to see because it's spread across dozens of small tasks (checking, reminding, calling and updating) that no system counts.

Logistics teams are a growing cost: the BLS reports a $82,320 median pay for logisticians (May 2025) and projects 18% job growth from 2025 to 2035.

How do you measure time spent waiting for carriers?

Measure time spent waiting for carriers with 4 numbers, tracked for a week or two.

Number	What it shows
Requests sent	How much carrier communication the team starts
Time to first reply	How long each request waits
Follow-ups per request	How much extra work each request creates
Requests escalated	How often the team has to step in

Multiply follow-ups and calls by the minutes each takes. That's the hidden time. See measure carrier response time, not just on-time delivery.

Where do the hours actually go?

Most of the hours go to 4 tasks.

Checking: opening the inbox to see if anything came back.
Reminding: writing the second and third email.
Calling: when email doesn't work.
Updating: telling sales, customers or managers that there's no answer yet.

How does Wilson, by Cartage, handle carrier follow-up?

Wilson sends carrier requests and follows up by email and phone on the company's schedule, then escalates when a carrier doesn't answer. Traditional logistics software gives teams information. Wilson executes the work required to move shipments forward.

Step	Trigger	What Wilson does	When a person steps in
1. Request	A quote, confirmation or update is needed	Sends it by email, phone or API	Not required
2. Follow up	No reply within the set wait	Follows up by email, text or Slack	Not required
3. Call	Still no reply	Calls the carrier or driver	Not required
4. Record	Each attempt	Records every message; call transcripts are saved on the order	Not required
5. Escalate	No answer within the window	Escalates to the team with the full history	Deciding the next step

Teams set the frequency in their SOP, for example calling every hour until the load is picked up. See who escalates when carrier messages go unanswered.

What changes when follow-up runs on its own?

When follow-up runs on its own, the team spends time on decisions instead of reminders.

Fewer open requests at the end of each day.
Faster answers, because no request waits for someone to have time.
Clear escalations, with every attempt already recorded.
Data on carriers: response time becomes part of the carrier's service score.

FAQs

How much time do logistics teams spend chasing carriers? It varies, and most teams don't measure it. Track requests sent, time to first reply, follow-ups per request and escalations for a week or two to find out.
How do I reduce time spent waiting for carrier replies? Set follow-up rules (when to remind, when to call, when to escalate) and automate the follow-up.
Can AI follow up with carriers? Yes. Wilson, by Cartage, follows up by email and phone on the company's schedule and escalates when a carrier doesn't answer.
Does Wilson call carriers? Yes. Wilson calls carriers and drivers, and call transcripts are saved on the order.
Can I set how often Wilson follows up? Yes. Channels and frequency are configured per customer and set in the company's SOP.
How is Wilson priced? There's no subscription fee. Pricing is a percentage of the carrier payments that run through Wilson.

Conclusion

Waiting for carriers is some of the most expensive work a logistics team does, because it never looks like work. Measuring requests, replies, follow-ups and escalations shows where the hours go. Wilson, by Cartage, sends the requests, follows up by email and phone and escalates with the full history. The practical first step is to measure one week of follow-ups, start Wilson on a few lanes and compare.

Sources

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Logisticians: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/logisticians.htm
Cartage, Wilson product FAQ, October 2026: https://cartage.ai