How to Check a Freight Broker Before Booking a Load

A real company name and a valid MC number do not prove that the person offering a load works for that company. Modern freight fraud often begins with the identity of a legitimate broker or carrier being copied by someone else.

Carrier onboarding should therefore answer three separate questions: is the broker legally authorized, is the company likely and able to pay, and is this contact and this load genuine?

Skipping any one of these checks can expose the carrier to nonpayment, stolen freight, identity theft, false cargo claims, or a load that was never authorized by the real broker.

1. Confirm the legal name and operating authority

Search official FMCSA records using the broker's MC number, USDOT number, legal name, or DBA. Motus now provides public registration search capability. SAFER provides company information and related safety data.

Confirm the legal business name, DBA if one is used, physical and mailing addresses, USDOT and MC numbers, entity type, broker authority status, the phone number shown in the public record, and any visible out-of-service or inactive status.

The authority should be active for the service being offered. A pending application, inactive registration, or carrier authority alone does not authorize property brokerage.

2. Check the broker's financial security

Property brokers generally maintain $75,000 in financial security through a BMC-84 surety bond or BMC-85 trust fund filing.

New federal requirements took effect on January 16, 2026. FMCSA states that if available financial security falls below $75,000 and is not replenished within seven calendar days, the agency will suspend the broker or freight forwarder's operating authority.

Review current filing information in official records. A bond is not a payment guarantee for every load, and claims can compete for limited funds. Still, a missing or cancelled filing is a major warning that requires resolution before booking.

3. Verify the person, phone number, and email

Do not use only the contact information in the load posting or email signature. Compare it with official records and a trusted company website.

FMCSA recommends calling the number shown in SAFER when the provided number does not match. Ask the main office to confirm the employee, load number, pickup, destination, and rate.

Review the email carefully: the domain should match the real company domain, a small spelling change can indicate impersonation, a free email address needs stronger verification, the reply address should match the visible sender, and unexpected links and document portals should be treated cautiously.

Urgent requests for passwords, registration credentials, banking information, or identity documents should be verified independently. FMCSA issued alerts in 2026 about fake Motus links, bogus carrier status notices, and other messages that imitated government systems. Official access should begin from a trusted .gov address rather than an email link.

4. Review credit and payment performance

Authority answers a legal question. Credit review answers a financial question.

Use a reputable broker credit source, factoring company, industry references, or the carrier's own payment history. Look for average days to pay, reports of late or disputed payments, recent changes in credit limit, collection or bond-claim patterns, length of operating history, whether the factor will approve the customer and amount, and whether the broker has paid this carrier reliably before.

A new broker is not automatically fraudulent, and an older broker is not automatically safe. Age should influence the level of review, not replace it. Set an internal credit limit for direct exposure. A carrier that accepts several unpaid loads from one broker is making a larger credit decision than a carrier that accepts one.

5. Match the rate confirmation to the public record

The rate confirmation should identify the same legal broker and carrier that were verified.

Check the broker legal name, address, and MC number; the carrier legal name and MC number; the shipment or load number; commodity, weight, and equipment; pickup and delivery locations; total rate and payment terms; accessorial terms and deductions; remittance instructions; and contact information.

Poor formatting is not proof of fraud, but mismatched legal names, copied logos, altered payment instructions, and unexplained changes are serious concerns.

Read the broker-carrier agreement as well. It can control cargo claims, payment deadlines, document requirements, subcontracting, insurance, indemnity, disputes, and deductions beyond the one-page rate confirmation.

6. Confirm that the load is real

When risk is elevated, verify the shipment with a trusted party at the pickup or with the real broker's main office. Use a phone number found independently. Confirm the load number, commodity, pickup number, destination, broker name, and carrier assignment. Do not disclose sensitive details until the other party has been identified.

Fraud deserves extra attention when the rate is far above the market without a credible reason, the broker immediately accepts an unusually high counteroffer, the destination changes after pickup, the contact calls the load blind but cannot explain the operating need, the driver is told to identify as another carrier, the pickup number or commodity does not match the confirmation, the contact refuses a callback through the broker's main office, payment instructions change to an unrelated company, a second rate confirmation names a different carrier, or the load involves high-value or easily resold goods.

FMCSA advises stopping the transaction if a broker asks the driver to present as a different carrier. No rate is worth participating in a false identity chain.

7. Protect banking and registration information

Carrier packets contain valuable identity documents. Send them only through a verified channel and only after confirming the recipient.

Limit access to Motus and FMCSA credentials, load board accounts, insurance portals, factoring portals, banking details, tax forms, and driver license and identity documents.

Use unique passwords and multifactor authentication where available. Do not share one user account across the office. Remove access immediately when an employee or contractor leaves. Banking changes should follow a callback process using a known number. An email alone should never be enough to change where freight payments are sent.

8. Understand broker records and transparency rights

Under 49 CFR 371.3, a broker must keep a record of each transaction. The record includes the consignor, originating carrier, freight bill number, compensation received for brokerage, certain other service compensation, and freight charges collected with the date paid to the carrier.

The broker must keep the record for three years. Each party to the brokered transaction has the right to review the required record. This right can help with a legitimate dispute, but it should not replace careful pricing and verification before the load moves.

9. Build approval levels for higher-risk loads

Not every load needs the same review. Create a written policy that raises approval requirements when risk increases.

Possible triggers include a first load with a broker, new authority or limited payment history, a high-value or theft-sensitive commodity, a rate substantially above normal market conditions, weekend or late-evening booking, a changed pickup or delivery after confirmation, contact information that does not match official records, a customer not approved by the factor, or multiple unpaid loads already outstanding.

A higher-level review may require a manager callback, shipper confirmation, additional credit approval, or a decision not to book.

10. Keep a verification record

Save enough evidence to show what was checked and when. The shipment file can include a screenshot or saved result of authority verification, the date and source of the credit check, the verified company phone number, the name of the person who confirmed the load, the broker-carrier agreement, the rate confirmation and revisions, pickup and delivery records, bills of lading and proof of delivery, tracking, messages, and call notes, and the invoice and payment record.

This record supports fraud reporting, collections, insurance communication, and future onboarding decisions.

If fraud is suspected after pickup

Act quickly, but do not improvise in a way that creates a new legal problem.

• Preserve emails, texts, call logs, documents, IP information if available, and payment instructions.
• Contact the real broker through the official public number.
• Identify the shipper or party paying the freight and ask for the genuine transportation contact.
• Notify the carrier's insurer, factoring company, and relevant load board.
• Follow lawful cargo instructions from verified parties and qualified counsel.
• Report the incident to FMCSA through the National Consumer Complaint Database.
• Consider reports to the Federal Trade Commission, FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, local police, state attorney general, and DOT Office of Inspector General as appropriate.

FMCSA warns that holding freight hostage until payment is illegal. The real broker and the carrier may both be victims. Cooperation and documented communication are usually the fastest path to protecting the cargo and identifying the fraudulent party.

A ten-minute broker check

1. Search the broker in Motus and SAFER.
2. Confirm active broker authority and financial security.
3. Match the legal name, MC number, address, and phone number.
4. Call the trusted public number when contact details differ.
5. Review credit and factoring approval.
6. Confirm the employee, load number, pickup, destination, and rate.
7. Compare the rate confirmation with the verified record.
8. Investigate any unusual rate, identity request, destination change, or payment instruction.
9. Obtain written terms before dispatch.
10. Save the verification evidence with the load file.

Frequently asked questions