MarginShock

Towing
fuel surcharge calculator

Wreckers and rollbacks are heavy, run on diesel, and drive empty to every call before towing back loaded. A good share of towing work is billed at rates set by motor clubs, police rotations, or local ordinances, so fuel spikes land hardest on margins you can't easily change. Find the real cost per tow so you price the work you can.

Worked example

Diesel Fuel $3.70 → $4.80

$3.93

surcharge per tow

Extra / month
$1,650
Of avg ticket
2.4%

Illustrative · enter your own below

Surcharge engine · inputs

Example numbers — replace with yours

Example: 4 trucks, ~420 tows a month, $165 average tow

The cost that changed
$
$
How much you use

From fuel cards, receipts, or supplier invoices.

How many tows the cost is spread across.

Your pricing
$

Used to express the surcharge as a %.

%

e.g. 20 for 20%.

Gallon change

▲ 29.7%

Extra / month

$1,650

Extra / tow

$3.93

No account needed. Inputs are saved anonymously to build industry benchmarks — never shown individually. Privacy

(What drives the cost)

Where the fuel goes in towing & recovery.

  1. 01Heavy-duty wreckers and rollbacks with low fuel economy, especially loaded.
  2. 02Deadhead miles to every call, often unpaid.
  3. 03Idling at scenes for lights, winches, and wheel-lifts.
  4. 04Long-distance and highway recoveries with high mileage.

(Pricing it)

How to add a surcharge customers accept.

01

Separate rate-set calls from private calls

Motor club, police rotation, and regulated non-consent tows usually have rates set by contract or ordinance. Private-pay and commercial accounts are where a fuel surcharge belongs.

02

Use per-mile pricing for longer tows

Fuel scales with distance. If your hook fee includes a set number of miles, adjust the per-mile rate beyond that rather than the hook fee.

03

Bring numbers to motor club renewals

Clubs and fleet accounts respond to documented costs. A per-tow fuel increase tied to the EIA diesel index is a much stronger case than 'fuel is up'.

(Sample customer notice)

A surcharge letter you can adapt.

Built from the example numbers. Create a free account to generate one from your own numbers as an email, SMS, invoice note, or contract clause — then review it before sending.

Generate mine free More letter, SMS & invoice templates

Email · friendly · draft

Review before sending

Subject: A small fuel surcharge on upcoming tows

Hi [Customer name],

Fuel prices have risen sharply, and fuel is one of the biggest costs of every tow we do for you. Rather than raise our base prices, we're adding a temporary fuel surcharge of $3.93 per tow, starting [date].

This covers only the added fuel cost — nothing more. We'll review it regularly and reduce or remove it when fuel prices come back down.

Thank you for your business. If you have any questions, just reply to this message.

[Your name]
[Company]

(FAQ)

Towing & Recovery fuel surcharge questions

01Can tow companies add a fuel surcharge?

On private-pay and many commercial calls, yes, if it's disclosed up front. For police-ordered and non-consent tows, rates are often regulated locally. Check your city or state rules before adding anything to those.

02Per tow or per mile?

Per mile is more accurate for long tows; a flat per-tow amount is simpler for local work. Use the calculator for the per-tow figure, then divide by your average loaded and unloaded miles for a per-mile rate.

03Should deadhead miles count?

Yes. Enter your total monthly diesel, including miles driven to calls. Those miles are part of the cost of every tow.

Other industry calculators