Why Priority Matters
Priority is more than a label in TrailerBase — it drives reminder cadence, dashboard sorting, and whether the trailer is automatically blocked from being rented. Setting priority correctly keeps your team focused and keeps unsafe equipment off the road.
The Four Levels
Low
Use Low for nice-to-have work: cosmetic touch-ups, optional upgrades, minor fit-and-finish issues. There is no hard SLA, and you will receive a single reminder three days before the due date.
Suggested SLA: complete within 30 days.
Medium
Most routine work lands here — scheduled preventive service, non-urgent repairs, items identified during a walk-around that are not safety issues. Medium is the default for new tasks.
Suggested SLA: complete within 14 days. Reminders go out 7 days before, 2 days before, and on the due date.
High
Use High for work that meaningfully affects rentability or comfort: a broken ramp latch, a failing interior light, a slow leak. The trailer can still be rented, but the clock is ticking.
Suggested SLA: complete within 5 days. Reminders go out 3 days before, 1 day before, on the due date, and daily if overdue.
Urgent
Reserve Urgent for safety and compliance issues: brake problems, bearing failures, expired DOT inspection, structural damage, electrical faults, or any condition that makes the trailer unsafe to rent.
Suggested SLA: complete within 48 hours. Reminders are sent daily, and an escalation email goes to your organization owner after the due date passes.
Urgent Auto-Blocks the Trailer
When you mark a task Urgent, TrailerBase immediately:
- Blocks the trailer from new bookings from today through the due date.
- Adds a red Maintenance band to the trailer's calendar.
- Marks the trailer Temporarily unavailable on your public booking page.
- Emails the assignee and any Fleet Manager users in your organization.
The block stays in place until the task is marked Completed. If you need to keep a trailer blocked longer (for example, to wait on parts), extend the due date and the block extends with it.
Reminder Cadence Summary
| Priority | Reminder Cadence |
|---|---|
| Low | Once, 3 days before due |
| Medium | 7 days, 2 days, day-of |
| High | 3 days, 1 day, day-of, daily if overdue |
| Urgent | Daily from creation, plus owner escalate |
Reminders arrive by email and as in-app notifications. You can turn off email reminders per-user under Settings > Notifications.
Changing Priority Mid-Task
You can raise or lower a task's priority at any time from the task detail view. Raising a task to Urgent applies the block immediately. Lowering an Urgent task to another level releases the block — TrailerBase will warn you if the trailer already has bookings that were prevented by the block so you can re-offer those dates.
Tips for Choosing Priority
- If in doubt, go higher. It is cheaper to finish a Medium job early than to discover you should have flagged it Urgent.
- Match priority to revenue risk. A High priority on your highest-earning trailer is worth more than an Urgent on a trailer that rents twice a year.
- Audit monthly. The Maintenance Cost Analytics report surfaces trailers where you consistently under- or over-prioritize.
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