New Authority Guide
A freight broker does not decide whether to trust you by looking at your truck. It lines up the papers you send against the public record and its own rules, and any mismatch stops the setup. Pass that match once and every load after it gets easier.
This guide walks through the carrier setup packet one document at a time: what each one is checked against, what makes it fail, and which parts your insurance agent controls. It is written for owner-operators and small fleets with a new authority, the group brokers look at most closely.
Every request in a carrier packet answers one of four questions. Knowing which question a document answers tells you what the broker will compare it to.
Freight fraud has made identity the first question. Brokers lose loads to impostors who copy a real carrier's USDOT number, name and paperwork, then take the freight or the payment. So the broker compares the phone number, email and address you give against what you filed with FMCSA, and it pays attention when those details changed recently.
A broker that hands interstate freight to a company without active operating authority shares the risk when something goes wrong. It checks that your authority is active, that it covers the kind of operation (for-hire property carrier, not only broker or private carrier), and that you are not under an out-of-service order.
If your truck hurts someone or the freight is damaged, the shipper and the injured party look to the broker as well as to you. The broker wants proof of auto liability and cargo coverage at its required limits, from an insurer it accepts, with nothing on the policy that would leave its kind of freight uncovered.
Payment fraud is a real risk too. The broker needs your tax identity to report what it pays you, and a verified bank account or factoring company so the payment cannot be redirected by a fake email asking it to change remittance details.
Much of this checking is now done by onboarding software rather than a person. The broker sends you a link, you upload your documents once, and the platform reads your FMCSA record, scores the identity details and keeps watching your authority and insurance after you are approved. That speeds up a clean file and makes an inconsistent one fail without anyone to explain it to.
Packets vary by broker, but nearly all of them are built from the same seven pieces. The middle column is the part most carriers never see: where the broker looks to decide whether the document is true.
| Document | Checked against | What stalls the setup |
|---|---|---|
| Operating authority (MC or USDOT number) | FMCSA registration and authority status, read live from the public record or through an onboarding platform. | Authority still pending, revoked or inactive; registered as the wrong entity type; a legal name that differs from the one on the rest of the packet. |
| W-9 tax form | The legal name and business type on your FMCSA registration, and the name on your bank or factoring account. | A W-9 whose name or tax number does not match the entity on the authority, as the IRS instructions for that kind of business define it. |
| Certificate of insurance | The broker's own limit and coverage rules, the insurance filing shown on FMCSA, and a call or email to the agent who issued it. | Limits below the broker's minimum, wrong insured name, missing cargo coverage, the broker not listed as certificate holder, or an agent who cannot be reached to confirm it. |
| BOC-3 process agent filing | FMCSA's record that a process agent is designated for every state you operate in. | No BOC-3 on file, which also keeps the authority from going active in the first place. |
| Signed broker-carrier agreement | Nothing outside; it is the contract the load runs under. | Unsigned or altered terms. Read the clauses on re-brokering, indemnity, payment timing and claims before you sign, because they decide who pays when a load goes wrong. |
| Payment details: voided check, bank letter or factoring notice | The legal name on the W-9 and authority; for factoring, a notice of assignment from the factor. | A bank account in another name, or a factoring change that arrives by email without confirmation from the factor. |
| Contact and identity confirmation | The phone and email on your FMCSA registration, sometimes a callback, a photo ID match or a device check through the onboarding platform. | Contact details that differ from the registration, a generic free email address with no history, or details that changed days before the request. |
Read down the last column and one pattern shows up: names. A frequent reason a careful carrier fails a setup is that its legal name is written one way on the authority, another way on the W-9 and a third way on the insurance policy. Automated checks can treat "Smith Trucking LLC" and "Smith Trucking" as two companies. Fix the name everywhere before you send the first packet.
Insurance is the piece a broker reads most carefully, because it is the piece that pays when a load goes wrong. Three things are checked, and they come from different places.
Your insurer files proof of auto liability with FMCSA, and that filing is part of what makes your authority active. A broker can see it on the public record, including the insurer and the amount on file. If your policy is cancelled, the insurer files a cancellation notice that takes effect 30 days after FMCSA receives it, and onboarding platforms flag it as soon as it appears. A certificate that shows coverage while the public record shows none will not pass.
The certificate is a one-page summary your agent issues to the broker. It lists the insured, the policies, the dates and the limits, with the broker shown as certificate holder. Most brokers ask for $1,000,000 of auto liability, above the $750,000 federal minimum for most general freight, and $100,000 of motor truck cargo. Some lanes and commodities ask for more. Our certificate of insurance entry explains each box on the form.
Cargo coverage for general freight is not filed with FMCSA, so the broker cannot see it anywhere except on the certificate and in a confirmation from your agent. And a certificate does not list every exclusion. A cargo policy can exclude certain commodities, refrigeration breakdown, loads left in an unattended truck, or any truck not named on the policy. Brokers that have paid a cargo claim out of their own pocket now ask about these directly. Know your exclusions before you accept a load the policy will not cover. Our cargo insurance page lists the common endorsements.
Because certificates can be forged, many brokers confirm them with the agent who issued them. This is where an agent who does not work in trucking costs you loads: a certificate request sits for two days, or nobody answers the verification call, and the broker gives the freight to someone else. Before you buy a policy, ask how certificates are issued and how quickly.
Do these before you call the first broker, not after the first rejection.
To see your company the way a broker sees it, run your USDOT number through our free FMCSA carrier lookup. If you are still shopping for the policy itself, the trucking insurance quote checklist lists what an underwriter asks for, which is a different list from what a broker asks for.
Most brokers ask for the same core packet: proof of active operating authority, a W-9, a certificate of insurance naming the broker as certificate holder, confirmation that a BOC-3 is on file, a signed broker-carrier agreement and payment details or a factoring notice of assignment. Many now add an identity check that matches your contact details to your FMCSA registration.
A new authority has no inspection or loss history for the broker to check its identity and conduct against, so many brokers set a minimum authority age or add extra checks. Others will load a new carrier when every detail in the packet matches the public record and the insurance agent confirms coverage quickly.
The federal minimum for most general freight carriers is $750,000 of auto liability, but brokers commonly ask for $1,000,000 auto liability and $100,000 of motor truck cargo. Some freight, such as high-value goods or refrigerated loads, carries higher cargo limits or specific endorsements. The broker's carrier agreement states its exact numbers.
Usually not. FMCSA shows the liability filing for every for-hire carrier, but a cargo filing is only required for household goods carriers. For general freight the broker relies on the certificate of insurance and on confirming it with your agent, which is why a reachable agent matters.
Most brokers only need to be the certificate holder, which lets them receive the certificate and may bring notice of cancellation if the policy provides it. Some agreements ask to be named additional insured on liability. That is a policy change, not a certificate edit, so ask your agent before you agree to it.
With an agent that handles trucking every day, a certificate for a new broker is usually a same-day request once the policy is in force. Have the broker's legal name, address and any wording it requires ready when you ask.
Send us your USDOT number. We quote your authority with every market that fits, make sure your insurer's filing is on record, and issue certificates to your brokers, usually the same day they ask.