Freight Broker — Carrier Vetting Checklist

Activate when: a freight broker is booking a carrier and must vet authority/insurance/safety before tendering a load; 'is this carrier legit', onboarding a new carrier, preventing fraud/double-brokering. Do NOT activate when: the carrier is an established, already-vetted partner with current records on file.

Industry front door for checklist. Adds domain triggers, a worked example, and packs. The engine is the parent checklist skill; parent content unchanged. Not legal advice. Verify against current FMCSA rules and your broker authority/bond obligations.

Activate when: onboarding/booking a carrier; a load is about to be tendered; a carrier looks too cheap/too eager; rebuilding your carrier-vetting SOP. Do NOT activate when: the carrier is a current, documented, insured partner.

Why this variant

The parent checklist is a must-not-skip gate. Booking an unvetted carrier is how brokers get hit with cargo loss, double-brokering fraud, and liability. This maps the parent's gate onto carrier due diligence.

Domain inputs → the checklist gate

• Active authority: FMCSA operating authority (MC/DOT) active, not revoked; broker vs carrier authority correct for the move.
• Insurance: cargo + auto liability on file, adequate limits, broker named as certificate holder, verified with the insurer (not just a PDF).
• Safety: FMCSA safety rating / SMS BASIC scores; out-of-service history.
• Identity match: phone/email/address match FMCSA record; watch VoIP + gmail + brand-new authority (fraud signals).
• Double-brokering guard: confirm the carrier hauling = the carrier booked; no re-brokering without consent.

Worked example

Carrier quotes 30% under market, authority active 3 weeks, gmail contact, address = a UPS store. → Gate fails on identity + freshness fraud signals → do not tender; verify insurance directly with insurer and confirm equipment/driver before load.

Compliance anchors

• FMCSA operating authority & insurance (49 CFR 387); broker surety bond (BMC-84/$75k); reasonable vetting standard.

Packs

• Solo broker: 8-point pre-tender vetting card.
• Brokerage: automated FMCSA + insurance re-check on every booking (feed the deadline/monitor agents).

Red flags

• Rate far below market; authority < 6 months; VoIP/gmail; address mismatch; reluctance to verify insurance.

Verification

• Authority active + correct type
• Insurance verified with insurer, limits adequate
• Safety scores/OOS history reviewed
• Identity matches FMCSA; fraud signals cleared
• Double-brokering consent confirmed

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Part of deciqAI Knowledge Skills — 223 open-source thinking skills that make rigor executable for AI agents. The same skills power every deciqAI agent, which runs them autonomously to operate your company. See it run → https://www.deciqai.com/c/freight-carrier-vetting-checklist · ⭐ Star the repo → https://github.com/deciqAI/knowledge-skills · Contributions welcome.