An Indiana trucking company with 122 drivers and 142 power units recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
APL Cargo Inc. of Wolcott, Indiana, filed its petition Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana.
The trucking company hauls general freight, fresh produce and meat, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s SAFER website.
No reason was given for the filing by APL Cargo, which lists Stefan Trifan as president, but the petition states that the company seeks to reorganize.
Wolcott-headquartered truck leasing company Indy National Leasing, which lists Trifan as sole member, filed for Chapter 11 on the same day.
A former APL Cargo lease purchase driver filed suit against the trucking company and Indy National Leasing in April 2023. The complaint, which seeks class action status, alleges that former APL drivers were misclassified as independent contractors instead of employees in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and Indiana wage laws. The lawsuit also alleges that APL drivers who leased trucks or trailers from Indy National weren’t allowed to use their equipment to work for other carriers without written permission from APL.
APL Cargo lists both its assets and liabilities as between $1 million and $10 million. The petition lists the number of creditors as between 200 and 999 and states that funds will be available for distribution to unsecured creditors.
The carrier and leasing company’s attorney, Weston E. Overturf, had not responded to FreightWaves’ request for comment as of publication time.
APL Cargo’s trucks had been inspected 177 times, and 51 had been placed out of service in a 24-month period, resulting in a nearly 29% out-of-service rate. This is higher than the industry’s national average of around 22.3%, according to FMCSA.
The trucking company’s drivers had been inspected 398 times over the same 24-month period, with 13 drivers being placed out of service, resulting in a 3% out-of-service rate. This is lower than the national average of around 6.7%, according to FMCSA.
In the past two years, the company’s trucks had been involved in three injury crashes and nine tow-aways.
The three largest unsecured creditors are SOS Capital II LLC, owed nearly $541,000; Dynasty Capital, owed $350,000; and JRG Funding, owed nearly $342,000. APL Cargo is disputing the trade debt claims against the three lenders, which are based in New York, according to the petition.
Another unsecured creditor, US Truck & Trailer Repair Co. of West Lafayette, Indiana, is owed more than $1.4 million.
According to Indy National Leasing’s petition, the company has assets of up to $50,000 and liabilities of $10 million to $50 million.
This is a developing story.
