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Global Security Operations Center status: GSOC ATLANTA 33.7490°N 84.3880°W STATUS: ACTIVE --:-- ET

[ Broker & shipper reference ]

Carrier vetting checklist.

When a carrier you tendered turns out to be a fraud, the loss and the liability follow your authority, not theirs. This is the checklist to run on every carrier, every load, before the freight moves.

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[ 01 / The checklist ]

Ten checks before you tender.

Work it top to bottom on every carrier. The single source of truth is the FMCSA SAFER system, not the documents the carrier sends you.

  1. 01 Pull the carrier on the FMCSA SAFER system and confirm the MC and DOT numbers are active.
  2. 02 Confirm the operating authority is in the exact legal name you were given, not a similar or different one.
  3. 03 Treat authority less than 180 days old, or recently reactivated from dormancy, as a reason to slow down.
  4. 04 Cross-check the carrier's FMCSA record against its Secretary of State business filing, and treat any ownership or registration change in the last 180 days as a reason to slow down.
  5. 05 Call the carrier on the phone number listed with FMCSA, and never trust an incoming call.
  6. 06 Verify active, adequate cargo and liability insurance, with the certificate sent by the insurer, not the carrier.
  7. 07 Check the safety record and out-of-service rates before you commit a load.
  8. 08 Read the bill of lading for re-tender or co-brokering language, and treat quick-pay pressure or an unfamiliar factoring company as a signal.
  9. 09 Verify the driver, tractor, and paperwork at pickup against the booking.
  10. 10 Document the entire check and keep it on file. It is your defense if carrier selection is ever questioned.

[ 02 / Verify identity ]

The one step that stops most fraud.

Call the carrier on the phone number listed with FMCSA, never the number on the rate sheet, and never trust an incoming call. A fraudster controls their own line but not the one on file, so calling out to the verified number defeats most identity spoofing.

Then match every detail, the legal name, the address, the email domain, against the FMCSA record. Recently reactivated dormant authority and authority under 180 days old are both reasons to slow down, because they are how carrier identity theft and double-brokering rings get started.

[ 03 / Keep the record ]

The record is the defense.

A documented vetting program, applied to every carrier on every load, is your defense when carrier selection is questioned after a loss. Capture the FMCSA check, the verification call, the insurance certificate, and the rate confirmation, and keep the trail.

Red flags, stop and re-verify

  • A phone number or email that does not match FMCSA records.
  • Operating authority freshly reactivated from dormancy, or under 180 days old.
  • Pressure for quick-pay, or an unfamiliar third-party factoring company.
  • A company name or address on the paperwork that differs from FMCSA SAFER.
  • The LLC was recently sold, or its ownership changed in the last 180 days.

[ 04 / Or run it managed ]

Or have it run for you, in under 10 minutes.

Running this on every load, the same way every time, is where it breaks down under volume. OpSec Intel runs managed driver and carrier vetting against authoritative records in under 10 minutes per carrier, and keeps the record that proves it, so the consistency itself becomes the protection.

[ Start here ]

Get a free security assessment.

  1. 01

    Briefing call

    Your lanes, your carriers. 30 minutes.

  2. 02

    Coverage plan

    Written scope and SLA. No obligation.

  3. 03

    Vetting begins

    Every carrier screened before tender.

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