Glossary
Freight broker authority
A freight broker arranges the transportation of freight for compensation but does not haul it. To do that legally in interstate commerce, the broker needs broker operating authority from FMCSA, filed under an MC (docket) number, plus a $75,000 surety bond or trust on file (the BMC-84 or BMC-85).
Broker authority is not carrier authority
This is the distinction that trips up newcomers and enables a common fraud. Broker authority licenses a company to arrange loads. It does not license that company to put freight on a truck it operates. A legitimate hauler needs motor-carrier authority (common or contract). Some entities hold both a carrier authority and a broker authority; some hold only one. When a company you are booking as the physical carrier turns out to hold broker authority and no active carrier authority, the load may be headed for re-brokering.
The bond
The broker bond exists so carriers and shippers have a source of recovery when a broker fails to pay. It is a $75,000 minimum, satisfied by a surety bond, a trust, or an approved self-insurance authorization. A broker whose bond lapses or is cancelled loses its authority, and the lapse shows on the public record before it takes effect, because the surety must notify FMCSA in advance.
The vetting read
When you check a broker, the facts on the record are whether the broker authority is active, whether the bond is on file and current, and whether the legal name on the authority matches the party you are dealing with. A broker booking freight under an authority that belongs to a different company is a classic double-brokering and identity setup.
Reading a broker on the record
On a broker's federal record the facts that matter are the broker-authority status, the bond or trust on file with its dollar amount, and the legal name the authority is registered to. A broker showing active authority but no bond amount on file, or a name that does not match the party sending paperwork, is where a closer look pays off. fleetfax reads a broker's authority and bond status from the same federal record it reads a carrier from, so the same lookup that vets a hauler also vets the broker arranging the freight.
Related terms
BMC filings (BMC-91, 91X, 34, 84, 85)
The federal insurance and bond forms insurers file with FMCSA: BMC-91/91X for liability, BMC-34/83 for cargo, BMC-84/85 for the $75,000 broker bond or trust.
Double brokering
Re-brokering a load to another carrier without the original broker's or shipper's knowledge. The freight moves under a carrier nobody vetted and payment chains break; it's the load-board era's defining fraud pattern.
Operating authority
FMCSA's grant of legal permission to operate for hire: common, contract, or broker. Active, inactive, pending, revoked, and the gaps in between.
fleetfax reads public FMCSA data and is not affiliated with FMCSA or the U.S. Department of Transportation. This page explains terminology; it is not legal advice.