broker News Updates

You may want to clarify the following statement from the news item titled “Trucks May Have Tinted Windows, Group Says,” which ran in the April 6 edition of TTNews.com: “Truck owners are allowed to tint the windshields and side windows of a truck’s cab, which could protect drivers from harmful sunlight, the International Window Film Association said.”

A provision in the Senate transportation bill would raise the surety requirement for freight brokers to $100,000 from $10,000.

Trade organizations representing motor carriers and freight brokers generally backed a federal move to streamline the federal registration process, but complained that the registration form is too long and complicated for many in the industry.

I’ve read many articles on the proposed increase in bonds. It is clear there is a need to “shake out” the bad guys, but who is going to do that? The bad guys will remain or learn a new scam, and the honest guys will continue to pay more in bond fees and freight rates.

PHOENIX — Trucking companies with brokerage units should organize the two divisions separately, a panel of attorneys said at a recent meeting here.

Without small brokers serving the industry, independent truckers would be at the mercy of a small, powerful group of large property brokers to secure their loads on the backhaul.

In an unusual display of unity, the Transportation Intermediaries Association has joined forces with the two largest trucking trade associations to support anti-fraud legislation that would raise the freight broker surety requirement to $100,000 and require separate broker and carrier licenses.

The Transportation Intermediaries Association is pressing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to shut down more companies that fail to provide adequate funds to reimburse fleets when brokers fail to pay carriers.

As the recession appears to be waning and freight shipments increase, trucking-related firms such as the Allen Lund Cos. say they are seeing a shift in the loads-procurement marketplace, while others — including Con-way’s brokerage unit — are turning to new technological formats to find cargo in need of transportation.

TransCore Holdings, a major electronic load board operator, reported a tripling of activity across its U.S.-Canadian network in May, calling it the busiest May the company has seen in 10 years.