Taking on Goliath---My Fight With TQL

Yes, I see your way of thinking now concerning not waiting for the dispatch. I definitely will keep that in mind in the future. I've been at this for just over 2 years and rarely have to wait that long. It never occurred to me that there was a problem brewing, simply because I know that TQL is full of incompetent and lazy people (not all), so I just thought it was par for the course in this instance.

 

Guys, I know stuff happens and loads can be cancelled. I've had loads canceled before, as probably all of you have. What I'm saying is that it has to follow protocol, if not legal then at least common. I cannot accept a verbal cancelation from some yahoo that probably still lives at home with mommy. I have to protect myself, especially because TQL is infamous for their shenanigans. I sent you a PM because I need to ask you about something.

 

THANK YOU. You have just answered the questions that I was going to PM you about. About the rate-shopping, I was doing this load-out for free, so I don't see how or why they would do this. HOWEVER, maybe they were "drop-location shopping"? This is just a theory to expand on yours now, and it explains why something was very fishy. They KNEW all along (or at least well before the blow-up) this was going to Fontana. However, no one wanted to go to Fontana, so they waited until I was dispatched and on my way to the shipper to drop me the bombshell.

 

Unless I decide to take a couple of days off somewhere, I really can't sit still. I'm just built that way. So when I saw that load-out that would take me home, I bit on it like a steelhead on a lure. The previous load that got me to Hermiston was from Mt. Vernon WA, only 300 or so miles away. I think I got paid a grand for it, which is not a bad rate per mile, but not enough to justify dead-heading 900 miles to Vegas. I was going to fill up the tanks at the Arrowhead also (less that $3 a gallon by the way), which is probably one of the best, if not THE best, truckstop in Oregon. So dead-heading wasn't very alluring.

 

See, but what I'm thinking is that the shipper NEVER KNEW what was going on. They released the trailer because TQL didn't inform them of the problem that was brewing. I offered $500. Don't you think the shipper would have accepted this? OF COURSE THEY WOULD HAVE! TQL supposedly paid some guy $825 to move the trailer 215 miles from Vegas to Fontana. (Which I SERIOUSLY doubt because TQL doesn't pay ANYONE ANYTHING to move a trailer such a short distance.) So you're going to tell me that the shipper won't pay someone $500 to move the trailer 1000+ miles to Fontana? SO this is what happened...TQL got GREEDY and didn't tell the shipper about my $500 offer because they wanted to keep EVERYTHING. I have an unrelated question: Does a broker have a fiduciary responsibility to inform his customer of any offers, like they do in real estate? Just a question...

 

Thanks for your input. From what I understand, according to their BCA, they ARE allowed to take from an unrelated linehaul to pay for a claim. It would be pursuant to state law (in this case, Ohio). HOWEVER, according to Bill of Lading Act, which is Federal, they are NOT. Generally speaking, a higher court takes precedence over a lower court. And obviously, a company's policy does not supercede any law that can have jurisdiction.

One thing I can say is that they have always paid on time. On a $5000 load which I hauled for them about 6 weeks ago, there wasn't one hiccup. And that load had 6 drops.

I could be wrong about this. The guys to ask here are @Ridgeline and @wichris and @PPNLE

 

It's good practice to get any terms and changes in writing. For any business. Let's say the broker canceled on you verbally and you agreed. What happens if that broker now turns around and claims that the load was never canceled? In these times, where money is tight and there is fraud everywhere, it is very believable that a broker or carrier would do this. I've had loads canceled and the broker simply emailed me the ratecon with the words, "Load Canceled" in red marker. How hard is it to do this? The bigger question is: Why wouldn't TQL do this? Why didn't they have the shipper hold the trailer?