Taking on Goliath---My Fight With TQL

He might have assumed some things wrong per law, doing things morally right.
Irregardless. I do believe that his message serves well the owner operators community no matter what the final outcome is. There are too many glorified stories you hear from people say about taking a load hostage or taking it to a nearby werehouse, taking it back to a shipper or landfill without authorization. Some assumptions and myths should be dispelled.

 

Pretty obvious that not everyone does

 

I would be surprised if they were able to even find that phone call, because it doesn't benefit them. And me personally, I wouldn't give them the chance to make it right, I would file against their bond.

 

First I still stand my advice, but read the last line of my post, the second part is very important.

I want you to explain to others how the law is on your side and why but only after this is resolved, you are not doing yourself anything favors by posting anything about it.

 

I had some history with TQL too and am 100% convinced they were deceiving you from the beginning.
I wish you well and hope the outcome will be positive for you.

 

Hi Gekko,

Thank you for detailing the situation and having the courage to post up. I understand the complexities involved, and I want to provide some legal insights based on your accounting of what happened BUT they're worth exactly what you paid for them and should not be considered as legal advice (standard disclaimer).

1. **Contractual Obligations**: You had a contract specifying delivery to Vegas. Once you signed the rate confirmation, the terms were set, and any significant changes to the contract (such as a new destination) would require mutual agreement and a revised ratecon.

2. **Duty to Notify and Verify**: It appears there was a delay and lack of clear communication from TQL regarding the delivery address. You had every right to request clarification and to hold them accountable for the confusion. If TQL or the shipper failed to provide timely and accurate information, they may be in breach of their obligations to verify and confirm delivery details. This is somewhat of a gray area, although minor, and they may claim that you violated the duty to verify, However, since they refused to send written evidence of an address change until AFTER you picked up the trailer, and knowing that you still intended to pick up the trailer, should show they didn't perform their due diligence in completing their duty to notify.

3. **Reasonable Charges for Changes**: You proposed reasonable compensation for the additional work required if the delivery address changed. Their refusal to pay you for the additional costs or for a truck order not used (TONU) underlines the importance of having a clear protocol for handling such situations. <-This is on them, not you and legally speaking, the charges that you proposed must be reasonable, which they were.

4. **Legal and Financial Recourse**:
- **TONU and Contractual Enforcement**: You were within your rights to charge a TONU fee due to their failure to adhere to the contract terms and the delays caused.
- **Payment Discrepancies**: Withholding payment on one load to resolve a claim on another load is indeed problematic and potentially illegal. Brokers, as you already know, must honor payment terms as agreed upon for each load independently.

5. **Resolution Steps**: Since you have strong documentation and evidence showing you fulfilled your contractual obligations, you’re in a good position to assert your rights. Continue to use this documentation to support your case and I suspect they'll fold once their legal team reviews the facts and documentation (especially written).

 

He is a PO guy, doesn't have a trailer. It was an empty trailer move, he could use it for a week, and TQL made him pay $825 for that. It could be worse.