r/FreightBrokers

I'm looking for some advice from people in the freight industry.

I have an LTL shipment (a large arcade machine on a pallet) being delivered by Speedy Transport in Ontario, Canada.

Here's the timeline:

• Shipment arrived at the Brampton terminal on Monday.
• I requested delivery for Thursday.
• Thursday came and went with no delivery.
• I called customer service, and they told me they don't know why it wasn't delivered.
• They also told me no truck has ever been dispatched for my shipment.
• My delivery location is a commercial business with a ground-level door, so there are no stairs or loading dock complications.

I'm planning to call the terminal first thing Monday morning, but I'm wondering:

1. Is this kind of delay normal for LTL freight?
2. Could they simply be waiting for a lift-gate truck, or would they normally tell me that?
3. At what point should I be concerned that the shipment is misplaced or lost within the terminal?
4. What questions should I ask the terminal supervisor to get a real answer instead of "we don't know"?

I'd really appreciate any insight from dispatchers, terminal workers, or brokers who have seen this happen before. Thanks!

Our current system is... outlook and excel. which, looking at it written out, is embarrassing.

we have no idea which leads came from referrals vs website vs cold outreach vs trade shows. we just close deals and don't track the source.

starting to think this is why we keep spending money on channels that don't work — because we literally can't tell which ones do.

what are you using for CRM and do you actually track attribution? if so, what did you learn about which channels perform?

Hello Team,

We mainly do dry van and flatbed, however our customer has given us a large account to also handle their drayage shipments in Seattle/Tacoma ports.

When looking for a drayage carriers what are the things you guys look for? We have not done any drayage brokering before and are a family run company so any advice would be helpful.

We have mainly worked with owner operators directly before but for drayage and the volume is going to be 1200-1500 container per month it doesn’t make sense to work with owner operators so we are thinking the best approach would be 4-5 companies. But there are so many companies listed for drayage how do get through them without having to work with each one.

Any advice would be appreciated

New broker here. I’d like to learn more about bidding for loads. Where do brokers usually find bid opportunities, and how does the process typically work? Any advice for someone just starting out would be appreciated.

I opened my company two years ago and i had a MC reinstated back in 2025. When i try to book loads with TQL they’re saying that im permanently banned from booking loads with them per their compliance team and they wont give any reasons.

Company has a solid safety, no freight guards and no claims or losses.

Any advice if this can be resolved?

Since the market has switched out of favor for our customers and back in favor for our carriers, I have been having a great time telling clients to fuck off.

My favorite is when I get a new quote request opportunity and see 15 other brokers ghost posting the lane. I’ve been accepting the rate at very cheap rates then I fall off 15 minutes before pickup and tell them it’s because other brokers are still posting the lane. Want to pit us against each other?? I’m driving the rate on your lanes now

I've been thinking about a concept called LoadVetter — a tool that would let a broker check a carrier in under 60 seconds. Enter an MC number, get a risk assessment from FMCSA data plus fraud signals (VoIP phone flag, authority age, recent FMCSA changes, etc.), plus COI OCR and carrier self-onboarding.

I'm NOT building anything yet — just in the idea phase and trying to understand if this is even a real problem worth solving.

A few questions for those who've been in the industry:

1. How much time do you actually spend verifying a single carrier?

2. What's the most annoying part of the process?

3. If a tool like this existed and was reasonably priced, would you use it or stick with what you have now?

Not selling anything, just trying to learn. Appreciate any thoughts.

Seven straight months of spot gains and my inbox looks like it. Shippers that ghosted me all of 2024 are suddenly blowing me up wanting quotes same hour.

The speed is the problem. When it was a shipper's market you could take half a day on a quote and nobody cared, but now if I'm not back in 30 min somebody else already has it covered.

Curious how the small shops are keeping up without hiring. Are you templating everything, eating margin to skip the analysis, or just working nights again like 2021?

On Highway, brokers can pull our contact info, our lanes, our equipment specs, all of it, and use it however they want. No permission needed, no accountability when it gets mishandled. Meanwhile there is no button, no setting, no option of any kind that lets us as carriers cut a broker off, shut them out, or stop our information from being shared with them. We don't get a say, period. Yet brokers can cut a carrier off with a single click any time they feel like it. Think about that. They hold all the control over the relationship, we hold none.

I recently had a broker on Highway get ahold of 250+ carrier emails, mine included, and blast all of it out with zero regard for anyone's privacy. No BCC, nothing. Every carrier on that list could see every other carrier's info. That's not a one-off mistake, that's what happens when one side of this relationship has all the leverage and the other side has none.

If I want to work with a broker, I'll post my truck and reach out myself. I shouldn't have my phone and inbox getting blown up because Highway decided my data was worth using to generate broker business, especially when I have no way to shut that off on my end.

Curious how many other owner-operators and small carriers have run into this on Highway. Are we just supposed to accept that our information is fair game the second we sign up, with zero ability to control it, or is it time we start pushing back on this together? #brokers #carriers #owneroperators

Hey guys small carrier here, but I’m asking for a friend. He started his company some months ago and left it idle until he had a few months under his belt. Once he was ready he tried signing up with Tql and they wouldn’t let him haul, as far as we know it’s black flagged, and they made a business decision to not work with him. Can anyone here that works at Tql take a deeper look at it, or help to get him in there good graces? Thanks for reading!

Just browsing the board and was surprised by the low amount of loads for tomorrow 😅 have a good one boys! Drink lots of beer and nose candy.

How are you guys validating non-domiciled CDLs? Are you getting copies of the CDL for every load? Then what?

For context, I'm getting a bunch of brokers not willing to pay detention, layover paid.

I understand that its asking your customers/clients.

However, when you have 5 people check on my load, while I called twice in the morning that we will need it rescheduled and a questionable pallet.

So my question is, when we have to be held responsible for tracking, paperwork submissions, check calls, proper temp monitoring, driving freight, without shifting, and much more.

Why can't we hold a freight broker responsible for their end of the agreement?

Why does it take multiple emails, weeks to follow up for detention and layover pay that's perfectly outlined in your contracts?

Let's have a civil and legitimate conversation on this. No need to measure d__ks

I worked at a top 5 (in size) asset carrier with a large broker presence. I was doing 4-5 bids daily. I can’t imagine a single broker would be doing the same while managing freight, but was always curious how many bids you guys do

I'm a software engineer researching the brokerage back office, and I'd rather ask people who actually live it than guess.

From talking to a few brokers so far, I keep hearing the same things: check calls eating half the day, missed inbound carrier calls when a load gets posted, chasing PODs, and after-hours coverage burning people out.

For those running small/mid-size shops (5–50 people):

1. Which of these actually costs you the most — time or money?
2. What have you already tried (TMS features, macros, hiring offshore, AI tools) and why didn't it stick?
3. If one category of calls disappeared tomorrow, which would you pick?

I'm building automation in this space (AI voice agents that make/take the routine calls and log to your TMS), and I'll happily share what I learn back here. If you'd rather rant in DMs, that works too. Not selling anything today — just trying to build something brokers would actually use instead of another demo-ware tool.

Hey all, not selling anything here.

Genuinely trying to validate an idea before building it, and figured this sub would have the most honest answers.

I keep hearing the same complaint from independent truckers: brokers taking 15-35% commission, little communication, no direct relationship with the shipper.

I’m exploring a platform that would connect owner-operators directly with companies that need industrial equipment hauled (flatbed, lowboy, oversized loads), cutting the broker out and dropping the cut to around 10-12%.

A few honest questions for anyone who’s been in the industry:

Does the broker commission complaint actually match what you deal with day to day, or am I overestimating the pain point?

Would a lower commission actually change your decision to use a platform ?

What would make you NOT trust a new platform like this (payment speed, no track record, etc.)?

Anything obvious I’m missing about how loads get assigned/insured/no-show handled that a broker normally deals with?

For context, I’m an engineer working as a project manager and on my end I deal with the other side of this problem constantly, lack of transparency from transport companies, no real-time visibility on shipments, having to go through a broker for basic info instead of talking directly to the carrier. That frustration is really what pushed me to think a direct platform could fix things for both sides.

Appreciate any blunt feedback, good or bad. Trying to figure out if this solves a real problem or if I’m missing something obvious from the actual driver’s side.

I'm looking for some advice from carriers who have been through the startup phase.

I'm in the process of launching a specialized open-deck trucking company. The long-term plan is to start with a couple of low-profile step deck trailers and build from there. My goal isn't to be the biggest carrier—it's to build a company with a reputation for professionalism, reliability, and integrity.

From day one, I plan to run a first-class operation with:

Professional tarp service and securement

ELD tracking and real-time communication

Quick, accurate paperwork and invoicing

Strong back-office support

Excellent customer service and honest communication

I know that's how many companies used to operate, and I think there's still a market for carriers that truly do what they say they're going to do.

My biggest question is about surviving the first 3–6 months while my authority ages.

I don't want to invest in new specialized equipment only to have it sitting in the yard because I can't access enough broker freight or direct customers with a brand-new authority. I'd rather be strategic than rush into buying expensive assets that aren't generating revenue.

Would it make more sense to:

Start with a box truck, Sprinter van, or hotshot setup to age the authority while generating cash flow?

Lease equipment instead of purchasing initially?

Focus heavily on direct shipper sales from day one?

Or is it realistic to jump straight into open-deck specialized freight with a new authority?

For those of you who have started a carrier recently:

How difficult was it to get freight with a brand-new authority?

How long did it take before brokers began working with you consistently?

What would you do differently if you were starting over today?

Any mistakes I should avoid during those first few months?

I'd really appreciate hearing from people who've actually been through it. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Hello, this is a hard question to ask because it benefit’s fraudsters. If you can DM your answers that would be better, BUT I want a business address now. I used my home and personal info to make it easier for brokers on spot freight to confirm I am in no way seen as fraudulent.

Iv been doing long enough i need to upgrade. So, what are the odds I get nailed by every one of my backhaul brokers and spend 30-90days hauling back empty because I’m flagged as address change and insurance renewal in September. Are yall still terrified of info changes or have things blown over?

I have a customer that recently purchased a couple trailers, and wants them moved cross country. The trailers are a ridiculous size that 100% won’t interest any carriers 36’ R with rollup door and liftgate.

Anyone have an idea how to price it out? They said they preffer loadout but will take a tow away option too just to get them there, but I have zero idea how to quote it.