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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;true blue, post: 12334637, member: 68014&quot;]I&#039;ve only been trucking for a few years (since I got out of the Navy in &#039;78), but here&#039;s my opinion, as I&#039;ve been an O/O leased to a few different companies and now in my 23rd year under my own authority.&nbsp; No bond amount is going to stop criminals and scam artists from getting into business. That&#039;s what OOIDA mistakenly believed when they got on board with all the other big brokerages (J.B. Hunt, Schneider, Landstar, etc. etc.) to raise the bond from $10K to $75K.&nbsp; They said it would be a step in the right direction. WRONG! All it did (to the GREAT DELIGHT of the bigger carriers/brokerages) was knock out a lot of mom &amp; pop brokerages like myself, who didn&#039;t have a LOT of freight (VOLUME freight), but had a few really good customers who paid our rates so we could pay the carriers well and on time.&nbsp; Those big brokerages laughed all the way to the bank!&nbsp; The $75 bond knocked out a BUNCH of us from continuing our brokerage. Now, just think a minute! Have you heard of these ambulance-chasing injury lawyers looking to get our liability insurance raised from our typical $100K to upwards of $450 - $750K just so they can get BIGGER settlements for their clients (and their % - $$$$$)? How would you like that?&nbsp; Same thing, pal!</p><p><br /></p><p>Now, if you could think a little bit more - why don&#039;t they make the broker bond equal to the amount of freight a broker typically does in say, a 3 month period?&nbsp; You think Landstar, C.H.Robinson, TQL, BNSF, or any of the others worry about that bond that went from $10K to $75K? They do that kind of volume in SECONDS!!!&nbsp; Their bond, if things were done according to their freight volume, would be in the MILLIONS!!! They laugh at the bond, dude!&nbsp; Start thinking like a business man! We O/O&#039;s and small carriers are getting SQUASHED by the regulators (many of whom are on the take in one way or another) who regulate us to death!&nbsp; Take the CSA scores - they FAVOR the BIG CARRIERS!&nbsp; They could have numerous FATAL accidents and we could potentially have a couple of minor accidents (re: the &quot;swoop &amp; squat&quot; method used by insurance scammers who CAUSE the accidents and often work with these injury lawyers!) and our CSA scores would make us look WAY worse than a Schneider!&nbsp; Remember when the details on the accidents used to be open to the public? Yeah, that didn&#039;t last long! The big carriers DID NOT want all their accidents being viewed by everyone.&nbsp; Showed just how bad they really were. But their scores looked good!</p><p><br /></p><p>You want to protect yourself from scam artists and thug brokers? Do your due diligence - </p><p>1. Don&#039;t haul for a new broker! Give them a year in business first. (Check their &quot;old&quot; MC # with their DOT #. That&#039;s the number that matters!).</p><p>2. Do a credit check - Ansonia Credit Check, if you don&#039;t have the load board account</p><p>3. Make sure EVERYTHING you discussed in the rate is IN WRITING on the RATE CON!</p><p>4. If you made the mistake of being under a load and you find out their crooked, as you read this, don&#039;t unload without getting paid BEFORE you unload - and git it in direct deposit.&nbsp; </p><p>5. Get yourself a good transportation attorney, or at least read the latest book by Henry E. Sutton: &quot;Rules of the Road; A Practical Guide to the Legal Issues in Truck Transportation&quot;.&nbsp; Learn how to do your business like a business man (or woman).</p><p>6. Don&#039;t haul cheap freight! My motto: I will never haul a load that I can&#039;t make a profit on. You can be sure the broker is still going to make HIS profit!</p><p>7. Act like a professional - Be on time, dress like you are in business, keep your equipment looking good and maintain it properly and update your broker on your load (arrival, load, unload, etc.). A good broker will remember you and those good brokers are the ones you want to keep in your phone and stay in touch with.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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