Getting your own authority ( Pro's -Con's)

You being a Former Marine should know all about self-discipline.....

That's the bulk of it.....You are responsible for you......No one else....

If you have to "work as directed"....Then running under your own authority will not work.....

 

Look at page one of the sticky'd thread "so you want to own your own business"...

I too, was thinking about "aging an MC". Think you have to have INSURANCE in place, in order for it to be activated.

Similar to "employment history", FMSCA's site will allow you to see the insurance and active/inactive history of an MC.

Was gonna ask BBB or anyone else, about having your own MC# and leasing on with someone else anyway (vis-a-vis, "aging an MC number").

Aside from the additional paperwork (and I wonder what a new entrant audit will look like with NO TRUCK - LOL), and no one to "feed you" loads or factor your BOL's (since this is a "service" that most O/O-Lease-On companies "provide" as part of their percentage).

Yes, a "new authority" might encounter some problems getting hooked up with brokers - likely, primarily because of lack of safety history - or perhaps even, because a "new/scam authority" can go out and grab a high value load - STEAL IT - and VANISH...

Rick

 

I called on a load on Thursday and the first question the broker asked was how long has this company had its Authority. The broker then went on to say that if it was under 6 months old then the load would have been a no go!
He (the Broker said it was the shipper that didn't want anyone with a new Authority to pull the load)

 

you had best find that million dollar load to pull a scam like that. Because pulling groceries sure wouldn't cut if for me. Not enough value there.

Most items aren't worth stealing in my eyes.

And to get the loads you could get any return on, you don't get them as a new carrier.


There are carriers that have strictly O/O's leased on to them. There's one around here.

 

sitting on it makes no sense,cost of ins will be burden,get it and run with it

 

I may be changing who I have my truck leased to sometime in the near future now that my rig is paid off. Where I am at, you either drive a company truck, or you drive your own truck operating under their authority. There are a few other outfits in the area who have both of those options, as well as a third option to run under your own numbers pulling their freight.

Seems as though a set-up like that would allow me to gradually ease my way into the "independent" category, as I could lease on with them initially doing precisely what I am doing now to learn the way they do things...and then when I am ready to get my own numbers, I could keep working under their numbers while my stuff is being set up and I'd have their office staff available to answer questions I might have in the process...much like the current carrier I am with was helpful as I was shopping for and eventually purchased my current rig. Once my authority is up and active, I'd have work since I'd be using the carrier I was formerly leased to as a broker to run the same freight I had been running under their numbers....but since I would have my own authority, I could also arrange freight on my own outside of that carrier if they didn't have anything for me or if I wanted to make a little extra money elsewhere.

Running under this sort of arrangement would effectively "age" the MC authority for a while....don't know any other way to really do it without throwing up red flags somewhere along the way.

 

Keeping in mind, that, unless the people you're currently under also hold a brokers license - technically - it wouldn't be legal for you to run your self-gen'd loads through them, under YOUR MC#.

If you're ALREADY self-gen'ing loads, then speak with your brokers/agents to see if you can use them as references.

This is one of those "###### if you do..." scenarios, where people want experience, but you can't GET ANY, if people won't give you a shot.

If you're put there ALREADY - you should have a "book of contacts" that you're using (Business 101), you should be "pressing the flesh" (face to face - again, basic business).

I'm considering going this route myself - and don't have a TRUCK YET - but thinking about getting the authority NOW - so it will be "aged in" by the time I'm ready to roll. I have some friends that would be HAPPY to fly MY NUMBERS, but they're SLACKERS and I don't need their poor driving/logging and equipment maintenance "hits" to drag MY CSA/SafeStat numbers into the dumper...

I've already got a number of brokers and direct shippers in my "network of friends", and can likely get SOME LOADS through my current contacts. But "cold calling" off load boards with a new MC, might present some issues. Again - ###### if you do.

Rick