Taking on Goliath---My Fight With TQL

Good evening boys and girls. I just got back a couple of weeks ago from doing a 7-week tour. I have lots of questions, comments and observations. But those can wait. Everything went very smooth, except my last load (which brought me home). So here is the story. I hope you guys enjoy it and I will be looking forward to your replies. I don't really need validation or support, because I'm already convinced I'm in the right. I'm really just posting this to put TQL on blast (and I'm just starting) and to hopefully glean some information that would be useful to anyone who is getting screwed out there by various brokers. The reason this crap keeps happening is because most truckers don't fight back. Sometimes, a kind word and a baseball bat gets better results than just a kind word. And the gloves are coming off. I'm sick of this BS.

On Friday, Aug 2, I was near Hermiston OR. I had spent the night there at the Space Age truck stop. At 9:30 in the morning, I "booked" a loadout trailer going from Umatilla OR back home to Vegas, that was to deliver 7 days later. I wasn't getting paid for it. I didn't mind because I had been on the road for 7 weeks and was itching to get home. Now as you probably know, TQL doesn't officially dispatch you with the address and appointment until after the initial booking. So I signed and sent back the ratecon and waited. Usually it's pretty quick, like less than 15 minutes. But an hour goes by, and I started writing emails to see what the hold-up was. They replied, "Sorry for the delay, we're working on it."

An hour later, at 11:30, I fire off an email stating that if they didn't dispatch me soon, they were going to have to cancel the load. Remember, I'm in rural Oregon on a late Friday morning. If I didn't get the trailer soon, I would be stuck there for the weekend. Finally, at 12:30, 3 hours after the initial ratecon was signed, I get dispatched. So I head over to the pickup in Umatilla, which was about 10 miles away. About halfway to the pickup, the broker's assistant calls me and says:

"I don't know what the hell is going on with this shipper, but the trailer now has to go to Fontana." The shipper was R+L Carriers. I was moving one of their trailers.

I tell him, "Sorry, but I'm not going to California. The contract is for Vegas. If you want me to go to Cali, I'm going to have to charge you $500. I'm doing this for free to begin with." He replies that they aren't going to pay me. So I tell him that the trailer is going to Vegas then. He said that they were going to cancel the load. I tell him that if they wanted to cancel, I would have to charge them $250 for TONU. I explained to him that it was now almost 1pm in rural Oregon, and because they wasted half my day, I would now be stuck there for the weekend. I'm sure you will agree that $250 is pretty reasonable. I know carriers that charge 5x more per day.

He replied, "We're not paying you TONU."

I said, "Well then I'll see you in Vegas, baby! I've given you two options to rectify this and you refused both."

He said, "You're going to have to call my boss."

I replied, "I don't HAVE to call ANYONE. If your boss needs to talk to me, he can call ME."

I then hung up. Understand that I was irritated by this time, and I wasn't going to pull over to the side of the road to make phone calls and jump through hoops just because this guy wanted me to. I wasn't BEHOLDEN to TQL. I already had a contract. So I arrived at the shipper, did my due diligence (pictures, emails, inspection, and whatnot), sent them to TQL, and went on my way.

Thirty minutes later I get a call from the "boss". He asked me why I had picked up the trailer after I was told not to. Since I didn't like the way he came across, I replied in kind. I told him that I wasn't his employee, and that once I had the contract, I was the one who called the shots. I told him he could ASK me to do something, but that didn't mean that I had to oblige. I told him that he couldn't just cancel a contract verbally with a phone call. I told him he had to follow proper protocol. It was a back and forth conversation until I finally told him:

"Listen, you have THREE options: 1- I'll accept a new ratecon to deliver to Fontana for $500. 2- I'll let you cancel the load if you pay TONU for $250. 3- I'll deliver in Vegas, PER THE TERMS OF THE CONTRACT."

So he blew a gasket and threatened me that he was going to charge me a $2000 repowering fee to Fontana if I delivered in Vegas. I replied, "Really. $2000? Is that what this load goes for? And you won't pay me a measly $500 to take it to Fontana myself?"

Things got REALLY heated and we ended up cursing each other out. He shot me an email with his version of the events, and I replied in kind. I ALWAYS create a paper trail. Thirty minutes later, as I was reaching the Wild Horse Casino (where I ended up staying until Monday because I couldn't find a load), another guy from the "Distressed Load Department" calls me. These guys have power over the brokers and keep them in line. We discussed everything that happened. It was a cordial conversation.

In the end he said, "We just checked with the receiver in Vegas and they stated that they WILL be able to receive you in Vegas." (Not that it mattered. I had given them their options and I wasn't going to deviate.)

So on Monday I grabbed a load from La Grande OR to Phoenix AZ, and from Phoenix I grabbed a load to Vegas. I delivered on Friday morning as promised in the CONTRACT. All throughout the week, I was getting the usual check calls and texts from TQL (even though I was being tracked on Macropoint) asking me if I was on schedule to deliver in VEGAS. I made sure I took a screenshot.

On Tuesday (4 days after delivery), I got an email from the TQL claims department saying that they were going to file a claim against me for $825. I replied that if they did, I would take action against their bond. I told them that if they dared to file a Freightguard, I would sue for libel, being that I fulfilled the terms of the contract. I sent them all the evidence. I even told them that their Distressed Load Department CONFIRMED that I could deliver in Vegas. (Again, not that it mattered.) She said she would get back to me. She never did.

A week later, I got an email from my factoring company saying that TQL short-paid $825 total on two separate loads I had completed for them about 3 weeks prior ($700 from one load and $125 from another). I immediately fired off a strongly-worded email to TQL advising them that there would be consequences. And again, I sent them all the evidence confirming that I fulfilled the TERMS OF THE CONTRACT. I told them that I would file on their bond for the loads that they short-paid. I even told them that I might go after the SHIPPERS for those loads, which were UNRELATED to the load in dispute. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it ILLEGAL for a broker to withhold pay on one load to satisfy a claim on ANOTHER load?

I gave them a deadline to remit the payment that is owed. So this week, we were going back and forth, but they continued to play hardball. The ladies were rude #####es.

I'm going to send one more email tomorrow to the Distressed Load Department. I'm also going to call the brokers for the loads that are getting short-paid, explaining to them that because of the underhanded actions of another broker in their company, I might have to call THEIR customer for payment. It's really a shame because I do a lot of loads for TQL. They give me good rates (in relation to what the current market conditions are) and I have an exceptional service record with them.

I've spoken to 3 brokers and each one said that I am 100% in the right, both morally and legally. But they each have different opinions on how I should proceed. I even spoke (via email) to Cassandra Gaines, the CEO of Carrier Assure and transportation lawyer. She said she got anxiety reading my story and wants me to file on her website. I told her that I wanted to give TQL every chance to make this right first. But now the gloves are off.

 

TQL and a factoring company, come on, man.

 

The only way these brokers are going to learn that contracts mean something to both parties is if they get kicked in the teeth when they pull this crap. Good luck to you, I hope you can make it hurt!

I wouldn't know where to start, but it might be worth finding out who to contact within the Justice Dept on transportation issues, relating to the short pay on unrelated loads. The current load would be a civil issue (contract dispute,) but I do believe the short pay violates federal code. Or is it just a regulation and therefore also civil?

Like said, good luck

 

Yeah, I know. But to be fair, TQL has gotten me out of jams before due to their sheer market share. And I've gotten great rates at times. Not ALL of their brokers are a-holes. As for factoring, I don't factor everything. Probably around 50/50. They don't have exclusivity. I can pick and choose what I factor, and I only pay 3%. I can't just sit around for 3 weeks to wait for a check, especially when I'm not home (for months sometimes) to receive it.

 

Why did you pick up the load after they cancelled it?

Did you have your Accessorial Policy or anything even close to one agreed to in writing?

 

What do you mean, "Why did I pick up the load after they canceled it?" I'll give you the Top 10 List:

1- I had a BINDING contract.

2- They never canceled the load. Just because they wanted to cancel it, doesn't make it so. They have to follow common protocol. Verbal doesn't cut it. You can't change the terms of a contract after the fact. Can you imagine what a cluster-flock the world would be if this was allowed? They kept arguing that they WERE allowed to change it after the fact. LOL.

3- I am NOT their employee. They cannot order me to do anything. They can make a request, and if it's in my best interest, I'll oblige.

4- If they REALLY wanted to cancel, they should have contacted the shipper and told them NOT to release the trailer. Why didn't they?

5- They wasted half of my day, so I was stuck there for the weekend because of it. If they would have notified me IMMEDIATELY in the morning, I would have obliged with no problem. I know shlitz happens in this business. But they wasted 3 days of my time because of this. Doesn't our time have any sort of value? WTF!

6- I gave them two very REASONABLE alternatives. It's a Big Boy's game with Big Boy's rules.

7- I'm willing to bet that the shipper didn't know what was happening. They wouldn't give me $500 to take the trailer 1035 miles to Fontana, but they paid someone else $825 to take it 215 miles from Vegas to Fontana? How does that make sense? Something is stinky in this story.

8- They don't put a price on my service. I set the price. When you go to Wally World to do your groceries, do you tell the girl at the register that you are not going to pay $200 for the groceries, but only $100? No. The vendor sets the price, and the customer has the choice on whether to accept it or not. They chose NOT to accept. Because they are bullies. Because they are used to getting away with shlitz. Because no one fights back.

9- Their agent in the Distressed Load Department told me on the phone, and this is the exact quote: "We just checked with shipper, and they confirmed that they WILL be able to take the trailer in Vegas." Not that it mattered, because did I mention...

10- I HAD A BINDING CONTRACT.

 

I'm the first to jump into the middle of a throw down, but I personally would have not picked up the trailer.

Not saying you're wrong, or right. That could have been a simple mistake by someone that you just turned into a huge deal, or most likely, just TQL being TQL.

Either way, I don't like the drama, and don't need the stress or money bad enough to deal with that

 

Where’s the lady that was complaining about poor service when she was doing cheap load out trailers. She would love this guy, he’s doing it FOR FREE!

 

And I'm not understanding why he's doing it for free.....????

 

LOL. They're not always for free! Like I said, I didn't care because I had been on the road for 7 weeks, I was in a dead place, and I wanted to get the hell home. I got a pretty good load to Phoenix with that trailer that I otherwise wouldn't have scored. It beats renting a trailer for a week and paying $150 to $300 out of pocket. And don't worry about my money. I'm doing better than most out there. I just paid off two credit cards completely to the tune of $10k and I still have $5k in the maintenance account. At least I'm not going belly-up like a lot of folks out there. I fuss over my equipment and am getting ready to burn a little more $$$ on the two harnesses, which I'll put in myself, and some other minor knick-knacks.