As the president of a brokerage company that has been in business for more than 20 years, I am all in favor of raising the surety bond level to $500,000. However, unless it is mandated by the Federal government, it’s not going to do any good. Let’s face it, the industry is full of unscrupulous people who will steal from everyone they can: shippers, carriers or brokers!
Our company has a program for building long-term relationships with our carriers. We pay competitive rates. We pay our trucks weekly. And we treat our contracted carriers with respect. I hear a lot of grumbling about bad brokers. In most of these instances I am amazed at how little care has been used to check out the broker. I think that everyone needs to understand there are good and bad brokers and carriers.
I would suggest the following steps in checking out a brokerage:
1. Verify active surety bond and brokerage authority.
2. Ask for and check credit references.
-current payment (look for paying carriers within terms)
-credit rating from credit service
-years in business (less than 1 year, treat with caution)
3. If they are less than one year-old or you can’t find out much about them, ask for a 40% advance. Negotiate advance amounts before you commit to load.
4. Execute a written contract with every brokerage.
5. Confirm if they are a member of the TIA (Transportation Intermediary Association). Most reputable brokerages are.
6. If the load pays above the market, be cautious. It doesn’t matter if they are offering $4.00 per mile, if you don’t get paid the rate is zero.
It is my theory that when you begin checking the “scam-artist” out, he will run for cover. New carriers check us out every day. We encourage and appreciate their desire to do things right. This level of consideration extends to the freight they haul for us.
Don’t make yourself an easy target for those unscrupulous brokers out there trying to make the easy buck.
Mel Winstone
President of Ryan Transportation Service, Inc.
Posted by rtscredit 
