How to Log Trailer Check-In at the Gate
To log a trailer check-in, write down the same nine fields for every truck before it moves past the gate: time in, carrier SCAC, trailer number, seal number, driver, loaded or empty, the spot or door you sent it to, and who checked it in. Then fill in time out on that same row when it leaves. That gives you a record that can find the trailer, show how long it stayed, and match the seal to the paperwork.
Most gate logs fail for one reason. Something is missing from them, usually the time out, a legible trailer number, or the seal. So the day someone asks "when did that trailer get here?", the log can't answer. This guide covers what to record, the order to record it in, and the few habits that keep the log trustworthy. It works on a clipboard, a spreadsheet, or an app.
01Why the gate log matters more than it looks
The gate is the only point where every trailer passes someone who can write down its details. After that, trailers get dropped, moved, and swapped between doors. A record made at the gate is the one that everything else in the yard depends on.
It also matters to the driver on the other side of the window. Under federal hours-of-service rules, time a driver spends waiting at a shipper's or receiver's facility counts as on-duty time. So does time spent attending a truck while it is loaded or unloaded (49 CFR 395.2, "On-duty time"). That is why carriers bill detention and why they keep their own timestamps. When the two records disagree, the side with a clean, consistent log is in the stronger position.
No one else is keeping that record for you. The U.S. DOT Inspector General found that industry-wide detention data doesn't exist in a reliable form. It also found that electronic logging data can't easily separate detention from normal loading and unloading time (DOT OIG report ST2018019, 2018). The same report estimated that a 15-minute increase in average dwell time raises the expected crash rate by 6.2 percent. If you want to know how long trucks sit at your site, your gate log is the only source.
02The nine fields, and why each one is there
| Field | Why it is in the log |
|---|---|
| Date + Time in | Record when the truck arrived, not when you got to it. This starts the dwell clock and is what a detention claim will be measured against. |
| Carrier (SCAC) | The Standard Carrier Alpha Code, the industry's carrier identifier, issued by NMFTA. Two carriers can have trailers with the same number. The SCAC tells them apart. |
| Trailer # / Container # | Copy it from the unit itself, not from the paperwork. For shipping containers, the last digit is a check digit that exists to catch data-entry and OCR errors (BIC). Check it with the free container number checker. |
| Seal # | Copy the number from the seal itself, then compare it with the bill of lading. Write NONE if there is no seal. Never leave it blank. |
| Driver | Name, and the phone number if you'll need to call them back to move the trailer. |
| Loaded / Empty | Decides whether a seal is expected and where the trailer should go. Empties left in the yard are easy to forget. |
| Spot / Door | Where you sent it. Without this, the trailer is only "somewhere in the yard". |
| Checked in by | Initials. It shows who to ask when a row doesn't make sense a week later. |
| Time out | Fill it in on the same row, not in a separate outbound log. Time in and time out on one row gives you dwell with a single subtraction. |
The free gate log template has Date, Carrier (SCAC), Trailer #, Seal #, Driver, Slot, Time In, Time Out, and Notes. It calculates dwell hours for you and highlights any row that goes over your free-time window, which you set in one cell. It has no Loaded/Empty or Checked-by column, so add those two if you need them.
03The 60-second check-in routine
- Write the time in before anything else. If trucks are queued, write each one's arrival time as it pulls up, then work through the line.
- Read the trailer number off the unit. Read it from the door or nose, not from the driver's paperwork. If part of it is unreadable, write down what you can see and flag it in Notes. Don't guess.
- Check the seal. CBP's CTPAT criteria for highway carriers call this VVTT: View the seal and locking mechanism, Verify the seal number against the shipment documents, Tug the seal, and Twist a bolt seal to make sure it doesn't come apart (CBP, CTPAT Minimum Security Criteria – Highway Carriers, March 2020). Even if you are not a CTPAT member, it takes about ten seconds.
- Record the carrier, driver, and loaded or empty. Match the SCAC to the appointment if you have one.
- Assign the spot or door, and write it down before the truck moves. If a jockey later moves the trailer, update the spot on that same row.
- At gate out, find the row and write the time out. If the row doesn't exist, the truck was never checked in. Log that as an exception. Don't make up a time in.
Treat time out as the finish line. A log full of arrivals with no departures can't show dwell, can't support a detention dispute, and can't tell you what is still in the yard.
04Gate log checklist
Print this and keep it at the gate, or check your last week of logs against it.
- Every row has a time in and a time out, or it is a trailer that is still on site.
- No blank seal cells. Each loaded trailer has a seal number or the word NONE, and any mismatch is written in Notes.
- Trailer numbers were read from the unit. Container numbers pass the check digit.
- Every row has a carrier SCAC, not a nickname.
- Every row has a spot or door, and it was updated when the trailer moved.
- Times use one clock and one format (24-hour works best).
- Only one person edits the log at a time, or each gate has its own sheet that gets merged daily.
- Once a shift, someone walks the yard and compares it to the log. Use the yard check sheet for this.
05Where a paper or spreadsheet log breaks down
A spreadsheet works fine for one gate and a guard who can type between trucks. It starts to fail in a few predictable ways. Check-ins happen away from the computer and get typed in later, from memory. Two people edit the file at once. Time out stops being filled in on busy days. The log shows what arrived but can't tell you what is at door 7 right now. If more than one of those sounds familiar, the process has outgrown the sheet. Our spreadsheet alternatives page covers what to look for next.
The same log, taken on a phone.
Vantage is a yard app for warehouses. The guard takes a photo of the trailer at the gate, the number is read on the phone, and the check-in is saved with the time and the photo. No hardware to install. The Free plan covers 1 user, 1 yard, and 100 gate events a month, with no card required.
Start free → Or keep using the template. It works on its own.FAQ
What should a gate check-in log include?
At minimum: date and time in, carrier SCAC, trailer number, seal number, driver name, loaded or empty, the spot or door assigned, who checked it in, and time out on the same row. Those nine fields are enough to find the trailer, prove how long it stayed, and match the seal against the shipping papers.
Should the gate log time in be when the truck arrives or when it is checked in?
Log arrival. If trucks queue before the guard gets to them, the queue time is part of the driver's wait, and a log that starts at check-in will disagree with the carrier's records. If you want both, add an arrival column and a check-in column.
How do I check a trailer seal at the gate?
CBP's CTPAT criteria describe the VVTT method: View the seal and locking mechanism, Verify the seal number against the shipping documents, Tug the seal to make sure it is affixed, and Twist and turn a bolt seal to make sure it does not come apart. Write the seal number exactly as it appears on the seal, and note any mismatch before the truck moves.
Can a spreadsheet work as a gate log?
Yes, for a single gate and a guard who can type between trucks. It works as long as every truck gets a row before it moves and time out is filled in on the same row. It breaks down when check-ins happen away from the computer, when more than one person edits the file, or when nobody fills in time out.