See the full rate before you book the load. Know your rights under the law, and why we are working to strengthen them.
100% Pre-Booking Transparency, explained by David McCown. Runtime 3:55.
Carriers are expected to accept loads without ever seeing what the broker is actually making. Federal regulation gives each party to a brokered transaction the right to review the broker's required record, but that right is retrospective, many carriers do not know it exists, and there is no requirement to show the numbers before a load is booked.
AFFTRA proposes 100 percent pre-booking transparency. Before a carrier accepts a load, the total shipper-paid transportation charge, carrier compensation, broker compensation, and all additional charges must be disclosed to every party to the transaction, including the shipper, the broker, the carrier, and the driver.
Transparency runs to every party in the transaction. The shipper, the broker, the carrier, and the driver should all be able to see the rates before the load is booked, so there are no hidden numbers on any side.
Under 49 CFR 371.3, a broker must maintain the required record of each brokered transaction for three years. Each party to that transaction has the right to review the required record.
The record includes information such as the amount received by the broker, the name of the payer, the amount of broker compensation, certain non-brokerage service charges, freight charges collected, and the date the carrier was paid.
The current regulation provides transaction-specific information for completed transactions. It does not require automatic disclosure before booking, and it does not currently establish a specific response deadline.
AFFTRA proposes to expand existing broker-transparency protections by requiring:
Disclosure is intended to reach every party to a percentage-based transaction, including the shipper, so that no participant is left guessing at the numbers.
What each provision actually says today, and what it does not say.
Records to Be Kept by Brokers
A broker must keep the required record of each transaction for three years, and each party to that transaction has the right to review it. The right concerns completed transactions and sets no response deadline.
Read the plain English →Rebating and Compensation
Addresses specific compensation and ownership conflicts, and limits gifts of value to shippers, consignors, and consignees. It is not a general limitation on ordinary broker margins and does not establish the proposed 3 percent cap.
Read the plain English →Providing Transportation & Service
Requires safe and adequate service on reasonable request and permits contracting for specified services, rates, and conditions. It does not independently create a pre-booking broker-transparency right.
Read the plain English →This is an educational summary, not legal advice. Read the current regulation text and consult a qualified professional before acting on it.
Four steps to turn a broker's refusal into an official record that counts. Each step has its own Learn More page.
Ask for the record of the transaction in writing, citing 49 CFR 371.3, in a way that stays routine and documented.
Learn MoreRate confirmation, BOL, your request, their response or refusal, and both USDOT numbers.
Learn MoreReport the refusal to the FMCSA complaint database, attach your proof, and save your confirmation.
Learn MoreSend your case to your McCown Co. state rep so it counts toward the nationwide audit.
Learn MoreBecome a Co-Founder for 25 dollars a month and help turn these reforms into reality.
