Broken truck. What do brokers do?

It depends on the commodity. I've definitely had to file a couple of 10k+ claims on carriers because of breakdowns. The product was perishable and they figured they could take and extra 2-3 days to deliver it. When the load got rejected for quality the claim was pretty much always going to happen... And what can I say they were warned repeatedly starting day 1 that it would be really bad if the load wasn't in asap.

If you're hauling dry freight about the only thing that can go wrong is the customer fining the broker. Some scummy brokerages will fine you whether the customer charges them or not, but I think that's pretty unethical. I've definitely had trucks break down and be 3-5 days late with no real consequences.

It's not so much that you get punished every time, but that you get punished severely every 15th or 20th time.

 

We find another carrier with trailer interchange insurance to pull it to the delivery. Then we deduct what that cost from the carriers pay for the load.

 

Yeah situations like this are what we are risking by being in business. They get hairy fast. It's a fairly complex subject with a lot of variables.

And when you start talking about claims and collections the money we take out of the pot starts to make sense. We are effectively vouching for both parties through the assumption of liability.

 

Honest communication is the best way to get things done. Most brokers have commen sense, and they have seniors who over sees the others. Over time breaking down has happened and it will continue to happen. We never know when or what will be happened. To reduce the risk, PTI is so important and knowing to do a few things on your own on your unit helps tremendously. When load is perishable, your unit usually have a downloadable software that tracks down the temprature, hrs of work, and fuels used. It will help you to back you up, if it goes down hills. Save the reciept and document the incidents. What broke down, when you found out what calls you made who you've notified etc. Some brokers are so short sighted and try you blaming. Some brokers understands and started working on a solutions. Those are the brokers you want to keep on your side in the future.

 

"You don't really know what you have with a broker until the #### goes sideways"-- My biggest customer after I'd been with her about a year. She knows what she's talking about too. I would say the same about trucking companies, but the really good ones specialize in not having problems in the first place. They have problems like everyone else, but from where I'm sitting it never really seems to involve me.

I really appreciate you guys. I really really do. Now the guys who think I'm lying about when the load should be delivered not so much. Please do not be late to Grocery store DC's because you think they aren't serious... They will ruin my week and if you're late enough your quarter.