Carrier Risk Management Checklist

Pull SMS data on Unsafe Driving, HOS Compliance, Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Hazmat, and Crash Indicator. Flag any BASIC above the FMCSA intervention threshold (65 for general, 60 for hazmat/passenger). Also note inspection volume — a clean record with two inspections is not the same as a clean record with two hundred.

Record the official rating from the SAFER snapshot. Conditional and Unsatisfactory ratings require senior approval before booking; Unrated is common for newer carriers and is not by itself disqualifying.

Request the certificate directly from the insurance agent listed on the FMCSA filing — never accept a COI emailed by the carrier or a dispatch service. Confirm auto liability ($1M minimum for general freight), cargo coverage ($100K typical, higher for high-value lanes), and that your company is named as certificate holder.

Carrier packet should include the broker-carrier agreement, W-9, voided check or ACH form for settlements, and any factoring NOA (notice of assignment). Cross-check the W-9 legal name against the FMCSA-registered legal name; mismatches are the most common cause of double-payment disputes.

Check Carrier411, Highway, MyCarrierPortal, or Truckstop CarrierWatch for double-brokering complaints, identity-theft alerts, and chameleon-carrier flags. Recent MC reactivations after a long dormancy and recent address or officer changes are common chameleon signals.

Send the SAFER snapshot, the watchlist alert detail, and the carrier's stated point of contact to the compliance lead. Do not book the load while the review is pending — tell the customer-facing rep the carrier is on hold, not approved.

Call the phone number on the FMCSA registration — not the number on the rate sheet or the email signature. Ask for the legal officer's name and verify it matches the FMCSA filing. This single call catches most identity-theft attempts before the load is dispatched.

Approval requires Satisfactory or Unrated safety rating, current insurance, no open CSA intervention, and a clear fraud screen. Senior approval is required for any Conditional rating, watchlist hits cleared on appeal, or carriers with fewer than 90 days of authority.

Use the current master agreement template — not a prior version. Confirm the carrier signs the latest indemnification, double-brokering prohibition, and Carmack liability provisions. Track signature via DocuSign or your TMS contract module so the executed PDF lands in the carrier file automatically.

Most broker-carrier agreements auto-renew annually but require COI re-verification yearly. Set a 30-day pre-expiration reminder against the auto-liability expiration captured during qualification.

Carriers occasionally redline indemnification caps, claim-filing windows, or fuel-surcharge language. Route any redline to legal before counter-signing — silent acceptance of a redline is the most common cause of unenforceable contract terms.

BASIC scores update monthly with new roadside inspection data. A carrier that was clean at onboarding can cross the intervention threshold within one quarter after a string of out-of-service violations. Schedule a monthly batch refresh through Highway, MyCarrierPortal, or your TMS integration.

Set the TMS to block dispatch automatically when the COI expires. Most disputes over uninsured losses trace back to a COI that lapsed three weeks before the claim and was never re-verified.

Pull the carrier's last 30 days of MacroPoint, FourKites, or Trucker Tools tracking compliance plus on-time pickup and delivery percentages from the TMS. Flag carriers below 90% tracking compliance — that is the leading indicator of double-brokering and load theft.

Record claim count, paid amount, and Carmack response time. A carrier with three open claims older than 60 days is operationally distressed; pause new bookings until claims close or the cargo insurer responds.

Score each active carrier on safety (CSA BASICs), service (on-time, tracking compliance), claims (count, severity, response time), and financial (settlement disputes, factoring NOA changes). Share the scorecard with carrier sales — top quartile carriers earn lane priority; bottom quartile go on a 60-day improvement plan or off-board.

Document the specific metrics that triggered the plan — for example, on-time below 85%, tracking compliance below 90%, or two cargo claims in the quarter. Send written notice to the carrier with the targets they must hit by day 60 to remain in the active pool.

Carriers on improvement plans should not get high-value, hazmat, or temperature-controlled loads. Update the TMS carrier profile so the load board posting rules exclude these commodities automatically.

Set the carrier to inactive, revoke load board posting access, and route any remaining open settlements through the standard dispute process. Off-boarding for cause must be documented in the carrier file in case the carrier later disputes the decision or files a complaint with FMCSA.