How to Start a Towing Dispatch Business with Zero Trucks

What is a towing dispatch business?

A towing dispatch business is the coordination layer between people who need towing services and the operators who provide them. You don't own trucks. You don't tow cars. You connect the two sides and earn a margin on every job.

Think of it like a real estate broker: the broker doesn't own the houses, but they facilitate every transaction and earn a commission. In towing, you're the dispatch broker — body shops, dealerships, and collision centers call you when they need a tow, and you route the job to one of your operators.

This model has existed for decades in the form of motor clubs and dispatch services, but it used to require office space, phone systems, and staff. In 2026, a single person with a dispatch platform subscription can run the entire operation from their phone.

Why this works with zero trucks

The towing industry has a massive supply-demand imbalance that creates the opportunity.

On the supply side, there are roughly 35,000 towing companies in the U.S., and 85% of them are small operations with 1-5 trucks. These operators are hungry for work. Many of them rely on motor clubs that pay $35-55 per job — barely enough to cover fuel and insurance. They want better-paying jobs but don't know how to find them.

On the demand side, body shops, dealerships, and auto repair shops need towing every single day. Most of them don't have formal towing contracts — they call whoever answers the phone, get inconsistent service, and have no documentation when things go wrong.

You sit in the middle. You recruit operators who want steady, fairly-priced work. You sign up clients who want reliable, trackable towing. The platform handles dispatch, GPS tracking, photo documentation, and payment calculation. Your job is building relationships on both sides.

Step 1: Sign up for a dispatch platform

Your dispatch platform is your entire business infrastructure. It replaces the office, the phone system, the dispatcher, and the accounting department.

A platform like TowMarX lets you create your own dispatch network, set your own rate card, recruit operators, and manage jobs — all for a monthly subscription starting at $19/month plus a small per-job platform fee.

When choosing a platform, look for these essentials: the ability to create your own branded network, SMS-based driver dispatch (so operators don't need to download an app), GPS tracking and photo documentation (your clients will love this), transparent pricing engines (so everyone sees exactly how every dollar is calculated), and low startup costs with no long-term contracts.

Your total startup cost at this stage: under $40 for the first month.

Step 2: Recruit 3-5 tow operators

Before you have a single client, you need operators ready to take jobs. The good news: this is the easiest part of the entire business.

Search Google Maps for tow companies in your area. Call them directly. Here's the pitch that works:

"Hey, I'm building a dispatch network in [your city]. I'm lining up body shops and dealerships as clients. Jobs pay retail rates — $95-125 for a standard tow — and you get dispatched via text message. No app, no exclusive contract, no monthly fee. Can I add you to my network?"

Most operators will say yes immediately. You're offering them better-paying jobs with zero commitment. Aim for 3-5 operators to start — enough coverage that someone is always available, but small enough that you can maintain personal relationships.

Add their drivers to your network with their phone numbers. They'll receive job offers via SMS the moment you start dispatching.

Step 3: Sign up your first clients

Now the real business begins. Your target clients are body shops, collision repair centers, auto repair shops, and small dealerships — any business that regularly needs vehicles towed to their location.

Start with body shops. Every body shop receives damaged vehicles via tow truck, often multiple times per day. Most don't have a dedicated towing partner. Walk in, ask to speak to the owner or manager, and pitch this:

"I run a dispatch network with vetted, insured tow operators. When you need a vehicle picked up, you text me the address and I handle everything — dispatch, tracking, photos at pickup and delivery, and a pricing breakdown for your records. My rate for a standard local tow is $95. Interested in trying one job?"

That first free or discounted job is your foot in the door. Once they see GPS tracking, timestamped photos, and a clean pricing breakdown, they'll never go back to calling random tow companies.

Aim for 3-5 client businesses in your first month. At just 2-3 jobs per week per client, that's 6-15 jobs per week flowing through your network.

Step 4: Set your rate card and earn the spread

Your profit comes from the spread between what you charge clients and what you pay operators. Here's how the math works.

Set your client rate at retail market prices for your area. In DFW, a standard local tow runs $95-125. Set your operator payout at 65-75% of the client rate — still significantly more than motor clubs pay, so operators are happy.

On a $110 tow job: your client pays $110, you pay the operator $77 (70% payout rate), the platform takes a $3 fee, and you keep $30. That's $30 profit with zero overhead beyond your monthly subscription.

At 40 jobs per month (realistic with 5-8 client businesses), that's $1,200 in monthly profit. At 100 jobs per month, it's $3,000. And because your only fixed cost is a $39/month platform subscription, almost all of that is profit.

The key insight: you're not competing on price. You're competing on reliability, documentation, and convenience. Body shops will happily pay market rates for a service that works perfectly every time.

Scaling from side hustle to full business

Most people start this as a side hustle — managing dispatch from their phone while working a regular job. The beauty of platform-based dispatch is that it's almost entirely automated. You set up the job, the platform finds the nearest driver, and GPS tracking handles everything until completion.

The path to scaling follows a predictable pattern. Months 1-2: 5 operators, 5 clients, 20-40 jobs/month, $600-1,200 profit. Months 3-6: 10 operators, 15 clients, 80-150 jobs/month, $2,400-4,500 profit. Months 6-12: 15+ operators, 25+ clients, 200+ jobs/month, $6,000+ profit.

At some point the job volume justifies hiring a part-time dispatcher to handle client communication, allowing you to focus entirely on business development — signing new clients and recruiting operators.

The scalability ceiling is essentially unlimited. Each new client adds recurring job volume. Each new operator increases your coverage area. And the platform handles all the operational complexity that would otherwise require staff, offices, and phone systems.

Frequently Asked Questions