Guide
Broker vetting: 7 checks before you haul for a new broker
A bad broker costs more than a bad lane. The checks below use public records and your own paperwork, take the same order every time and leave a record you can use later if the invoice goes unpaid.
In short
- A property broker must keep a surety bond or trust fund of $75,000 in effect, filed as BMC-84 or BMC-85 (49 CFR 387.307).
- Check the legal name, MC number and phone against the public record, not against the load board listing.
- Read the payment terms, quick pay fee and accessorial clauses in the rate con before you accept, not after.
- Save one scorecard per broker. It shortens every later dispute.
Four gates, then the truck moves
Treat a new broker as a gate sequence. A broker that fails an early gate never reaches the next one, and you do not spend time on rate talk.
The first two gates are public record lookups. The third is your own paperwork. The fourth happens at the dock, when the truck and the documents have to agree.
The legal basis for the bond gate is short: "A broker must have a surety bond or trust fund of $75,000 in effect" and evidence of a bond is filed on Form BMC-84, a trust fund on BMC-85. verify
The seven checks, in order
Match the identity
Copy the legal name, MC number, USDOT number and phone from the rate con. Look the broker up in FMCSA SAFER and compare. FMCSA advises calling the number posted there when the number you were given does not match, and not trusting search results alone. verify
Confirm active broker authority
Use the FMCSA Licensing and Insurance site. The record should show broker authority as active. "Inactive" or "not authorized" is a stop, however good the rate looks.
Confirm the bond or trust fund
The record should list a BMC-84 bond or BMC-85 trust. Note the surety name and the bond amount. A missing or cancelled filing is a stop. Cancellation needs 30 days written notice to FMCSA on Form BMC-36, so a sudden loss of filing is a flag.
Check the process agent
FMCSA publishes a BOC-3 process agent dataset on data.transportation.gov. A broker with authority and no process agent record is worth a call before you book.
Read the rate con like a contract
Find: payment days and start date, quick pay fee, detention and layover terms, TONU, lumper reimbursement, dispute window. Mark any term that differs from the verbal offer. Ask for a corrected rate con, not a promise.
Check payment history in your own books
For repeat brokers, look at days from delivery to deposit, short pays and unpaid accessorials over the last 90 days. The invoice aging tool does this in one view.
Compare at the dock
The broker name on the BOL, the rate con and the shipper instructions must agree. If the pickup contact is a different company, stop and call the broker before the driver signs.
Where each check lives
| Check | Where to look | Stop sign |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | FMCSA SAFER, rate con | Phone, name or address differs from the record |
| Authority | FMCSA Licensing and Insurance site | Broker authority not active |
| Bond or trust | Same site: BMC-84 or BMC-85 filing | No filing, bond under $75,000, or pending cancellation |
| Process agent | FMCSA BOC-3 dataset on data.transportation.gov | No BOC-3 record for an active broker |
| Rate con terms | Your copy of the rate con | Pay terms unclear or changed after booking |
| Payment history | Your invoice aging report | Median days to pay well above the rate con terms |
| Dock match | BOL, rate con, driver check-in | Different company name on the pickup paperwork |
Source: 49 CFR 387.307, eCFR, read 2026-10-09 (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/part-387/section-387.307). Other rows are working practice, not law. Nothing here is legal advice.
Worked example EXAMPLE VALUES
Invented numbers. A dispatcher scores three new brokers on the seven checks, one point each.
- Broker A: 7 of 7. Rate con says net 30, quick pay 3%. Accept at the offered rate.
- Broker B: 5 of 7. Authority active, bond filed, but the rate con has no TONU line and no detention clause. Ask for a corrected rate con first.
- Broker C: 3 of 7. The phone on the load listing differs from the posted phone. Do not book.
Over a month the dispatcher books 18 loads with A and 6 with B. Because the scorecards sit with the loads, a later short pay on a B load starts with the rate con you asked for, not with a guess.
Broker scorecard to copy
Re-run the first three lines every quarter for brokers you use often. Authority and filings change.
What we would check in your audit
- Which brokers in your last 20 loads paid later than their own rate con terms, and by how many days.
- Which rate cons lack a detention, TONU or lumper clause that you later billed anyway.
- Which brokers had short pays, and whether the shortage matches a clause you never checked.
- Whether any load shows a broker name on the BOL that differs from the rate con.
Questions
Does a $75,000 bond mean I will be paid?
No. The bond is one pool for all claims against that broker. It helps when a broker fails to pay, but it can be used up. See the bond claim guide.
Can I rely on a credit score from a service?
We do not rate brokers and we name no scoring service here. Use the public record and your own payment history first.
How often should I re-check a broker?
Re-check authority and filings quarterly for brokers you use every month, and before any load much larger than usual.
What if the load listing and the record disagree?
Call the number posted in the public record and ask them to confirm the load. FMCSA gives the same advice for suspected fraud. verify
Related: double brokering, broker not paying, bond claim, broker payment delay, payment delay tool, invoice aging, USDOT record explained, carrier safety data, broker and carrier trust timeline, red-flag checker, USDOT carrier lookup, authority and insurance records, broker risk radar pilot, authority revocations by state, insurance filing lapses.
See what your last 20 loads show.
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