US diesel prices hit a record $6.53 per gallon in September, and the fallout is now visible in bankruptcy court: at least 16 carriers, from single-truck owner-operators to fleets running dozens of vehicles, have filed for bankruptcy, according to FreightWaves.

The Department of Energy put the national average at $6.119 on October 5. The small seasonal decline into autumn offers little comfort to operators whose fuel bills are running roughly 70 percent above last year's levels. Diesel still costs $2.498 per gallon more than in the same week of 2025.

Who is going under?

The failures span every segment of trucking rather than one weak niche:

• A Florida-based carrier identified as an Amazon Delivery Service Partner, operating 18 trucks with a workforce of 30 drivers supporting last-mile delivery, has filed for Chapter 11.
• An Arizona carrier specializing in agricultural transportation has also entered Chapter 11.
• Long-haul operator Globemaster, which runs 50 vehicles, is among the larger casualties.

The pattern matters for shippers. When last-mile delivery partners for major e-commerce networks and 50-truck regional haulers alike exit the market, capacity tightens in exactly the segments where service reliability is hardest to replace. Surviving carriers are responding the only way they can: raising rates to cover costs. That dynamic is feeding inflation in transportation and warehousing, forcing shippers to choose between absorbing higher freight costs or passing them on to customers.

Why isn't the price drop helping?

The recent easing in pump prices runs into a bearish supply picture. The US Energy Information Administration has raised its oil price forecasts for both this year and next, citing rapidly draining global stockpiles. Diesel markets remain tight because of the ongoing Iran war, which continues to disrupt Middle East production and export flows.

Reuters reports that recovery will be gradual: producers are shifting to alternative export routes and ship-to-ship transfers as transit through the Strait of Hormuz improves. For carriers budgeting into 2027, that means fuel relief remains speculative rather than a planning assumption.

What does it cost to run a truck now?

The American Transportation Research Institute's latest annual cost analysis quantifies the squeeze beyond fuel. Non-fuel operating costs rose 4.2 percent from 2024 to 2025, with several expense categories outpacing inflation:

• New equipment prices and higher interest rates are pushing operators to keep older trucks, driving up maintenance spending.
• Truck insurance premiums continue to rise above the inflation rate.
• Tolls posted the largest percentage increase: carriers paid an average of 4.3 cents per mile in 2025, up 13.2 percent year on year.

The total average marginal cost of operation reached $1.854 per mile in 2025, up from $1.779 in 2024. That 7.5-cent increase looks modest until scaled against distance. The Federal Highway Administration estimates a single US long-haul driver covers more than 100,000 miles per year — meaning a typical operation absorbed roughly $7,500 in additional annual cost per truck before counting the fuel spike.

What comes next?

For forwarders and shippers, the calculus is straightforward: capacity exits at the small and mid-fleet end while cost inputs keep climbing across fuel, insurance, tolls and equipment finance. The EIA's raised oil price forecasts and the unresolved Iran war suggest diesel will stay structurally elevated into next year, keeping upward pressure on truckload and last-mile rates even as carriers that survived September's record prices keep pushing through increases of their own.