Reefer Produce Claim

Baxter & Bailey, it will cost a percentage of what they recover. TQL will drag it out to the very end and hope you'll just get frustrated and give up.

They will ding you with report, but i haven't found anyone that pay's attention to them.(other than holding hostage, double brokering, ect) i know we just laugh when a carrier has a bad report from them.

It's always best to not leave the original receiver before a USDA inspection, put's the claim between the seller and buyer then. As long as no temp issue.

 

Yes, TQL Got me, product on end of trailer (15% of load) damage as too cold since the produce was loaded WITH ICE ON TOP to quickly cool down from just being plucked out the fields.. same report, same deal.. temp set as requested, but that fresh cold air at end not helping the ice not melt... They got me... Load paid 3800... I eventually in the end, received $700... They still took the product tho for resale.... Pfft...

 

It is futile... Been thru it, full FDA b.s. and all, which btw they tried to charge me to pay for the FDA to drive out to Reno from Vegas since no FDA ppl in Reno....once tql stakes a claim and shipper/receiver signs with it,.. it's a done deal, they will drag it out until you quit just to prove a point even if it costs them.. BUT... Good luck... Really....have not took a tql since and that was 2016...I'll drive 1k empty on $300 fuel to go home before taking a tql load...ever... And I don't miss the 13 phone calls a day on a 800 mi run...

 

First, I'm sorry to hear about what you're going through.

I've hauled a lot of produce & fruit back in the day from CA, AZ, FL, SC, NC, & CO to Montreal, Boston (Chelsea) & NYC (Hunts Point). I never had a load rejected or refused.

A couple of quick tips:
1. Learn as much as you can about fruit & vegetables regarding transport temps, under-ripeness, over-ripeness, signs of damage, & packaging.

2. Always inspect it for damage & ripeness before loading what's going on your trailer. If a shipper sees you doing this, he's more apt to not try and pull a fast one on you, trust me they'll try. Guys that walk away or climb into the bunk while being loaded are asking for trouble.

3. Get yourself a couple of good (accurate) pulp thermometers. I used to place one in my rear vent window screen and check it every so often. Reefer's have come a long way since my time, but the rear was always a few degrees colder than the front. Make sure to check the calibration of your reefer unit thermostat for accuracy every so often.

4. 33 degrees is too cold a setting on your reefer for lettuce. If my memory's correct, I always set mine on 35 degrees.

5. Ensure your floor ribs are cleaned out of debris, along with your drains. Avoid stacking too close to the ceiling, that air has gotta be able to circulate effectively. Make sure your ceiling chute is intact the full length of the ceiling. Early reefer trailers didn't have a ceiling curtain or chute.

6. Avoid hauling berries like the plague until you have a real good handle on what you're doing. You old reefer hands reading this, no, I'm not even gonna mention ether.

7. Some produce loads require a good layer of snow up on top, especially Spinach. Make sure the guy shooting it up there does a good job doing it and doesn't skimp. Remember, it's your rig, make sure it's done right.

8. A lot of stuff, like melons, shouldn't be loaded wet, make sure they're dry upon loading.

I'm sure I left some things out, but these are few things I remembered quickly, good luck....

 

I can only go with Clausland. Ive run Produce into Chelsea and Hunts among other things. (Seafood and meats etc) Instead of repeating similar thoughts his post is the best summary. I can think of a couple of things but.. not material to the focused problem of who benefits or in your case (OP) who gets the smelly expensive bag?

I tell the OP to just write off the 10,000. It's gone. You will make it back. Insurance knows nothing and you don't get dinged.

What you don't want is the Insurance to get involved. Your premiums area already expensive as it is.

One final thing.

Regardless of what bill says, I set to 35. No one has thrown me onto the carpet for that just yet. Or even asked or demanded that 35 be turned down. Recorders too. I know that reefer wants to feed somewhat colder air into the cargo to do it's job. The magic 32 degrees is the problem. A GOOD REEFER can be set by God and it will be so. But any old abused reefer cannot be trusted to do that kind of performance so close to 32 degrees.

I am not questioning OP's reefer far from it. Its just that if God was a reefer man, he would have written into the 12th commandment or rather the 35th one... you shalt set temp at 35... //paraphrasing.