Straight answer
What to check before you accept
- Credit score on your load board. Most boards carry broker credit data. It's imperfect and it's an average, but a low score is a real warning.
- Average days to pay. More useful than the score. A broker who reliably pays in 25 days is worth more to you than one who pays in 60 at a slightly better rate.
- Active authority and bond. Brokers are required to maintain operating authority and a surety bond. Verify the authority is active in FMCSA's system before you haul — if it isn't, you have a serious problem before you've even loaded.
- Ask your factor. If you factor, your factoring company maintains its own broker credit list and will often refuse to buy invoices from brokers it doesn't like. That refusal is information — take it seriously rather than working around it.
- Ask other carriers. Owner-operator groups discuss brokers constantly. A quick search for the broker's name before you accept costs you nothing.
Red flags
Slow down if you see these
A rate noticeably above market for the lane with no explanation. Pressure to accept immediately without a rate confirmation. A rate confirmation that arrives without detention or TONU terms. A broker whose authority is very new with no payment history. Reluctance to answer questions about payment terms. Quick pay offered at a heavy discount as the only option — sometimes legitimate, sometimes a sign they can't fund standard terms.
If they don't pay
- Submit the complete invoice packet again, in writing, with the rate confirmation and signed POD attached. A surprising number of "non-payments" are incomplete submissions.
- Escalate past your day-to-day contact to their accounts payable department in writing.
- Brokers are required to maintain a surety bond, and there is a formal process for making a claim against it. Requirements and deadlines are specific, so look up the current process rather than assuming.
- Record it. Whether or not you recover this one, you now know not to haul for them again — and that's worth more over a year than the single invoice.
This is general information for carriers, not legal advice. For a significant unpaid amount, speak to a transportation attorney.
Answers
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if a freight broker is legitimate?
Verify their operating authority is active in FMCSA's system, check their credit score and average days-to-pay on your load board, and ask your factoring company whether they'll buy the invoice. If your factor refuses a broker, that's meaningful information rather than an obstacle to route around.
What is a good broker days-to-pay?
Lower is obviously better, and consistency matters as much as the average. A broker who reliably pays in around 25 to 30 days is generally more valuable to your business than one paying in 60 at a slightly higher rate, because your costs run weekly regardless of when the invoice clears.
What can I do if a broker doesn't pay?
Resubmit the complete invoice packet in writing with the rate confirmation and signed POD, escalate to accounts payable rather than your usual contact, and look into making a claim against the broker's required surety bond — the process and deadlines are specific, so check current requirements. For a large amount, speak to a transportation attorney.
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