Skyrocketing strategic cargo thefts keep many veteran brokers and carriers up at night. (If some are sweetening their coffee with Pepto, I’d say that’s completely understandable.) Just weeks ago, Chief Special Agent of the BNSF Railway Police Department Will Johnson testified before a Congressional subcommittee that this form of strategic theft has spiked 1,500% between 2022 and 2025.
I’m not surprised, of course.
And I didn’t sit back and wait for the crime syndicates to come to us when this threat first emerged.
Being proactive is in our DNA.
That’s why I directed our team and tech partners to build what I believe is the most robust carrier vetting process in the freight industry. It’s how I protect our business, our customers, and theirs.
Of course, it’s in everyone’s interest to come together and combat freight fraud. Because right now, some aren’t nearly as rigorous in their vetting process as this moment demands, the FMCSA hasn’t stepped up, and law enforcement doesn’t consider cargo theft a priority.
For now, at least, this is on us.
That’s why I wanted to offer some actionable advice based on our years of freight fraud prevention work—insight that may be helpful, regardless of whether you secure your transportation in-house or work through a broker partner.
Watch out: Crime syndicates are incredibly sophisticated
Strategic cargo theft isn’t executed by wayward troublemakers operating from the dark recesses of their grandmothers’ basements. These are incredibly sophisticated crime syndicates, and they often operate outside of our borders to escape law enforcement accountability. Without advanced tools, it can be nearly impossible to sort legitimate from illegitimate carriers anymore.
Don’t have the luxury of an internal risk department and multiple carrier vetting platforms at your disposal? Then I urge you to tap a tech-forward partner who can bring that level of scrutiny to the carriers moving your freight.
This counts double for targeted high-value loads, hot shot loads, and expedited freight. (Crime rings seize on mistakes that happen with greater regularity when you’re moving fast.)
Vet the vetter: Dig into your partner’s process
Working through a 3PL? Be sure you dig into their carrier vetting tools and protocols.
How are they confirming identities?
We know redundancies can surface red flags. So, make sure your partner vets every operator on multiple carrier monitoring platforms. (We use SaferWatch, Carrier411, and the industry gold standard, Highway, among others.) It’s certainly not cheap, but this critical investment is key to cargo security.
Are they reviewing carrier inspections, identity alerts, and other reports and insights to assess that the operator they’re considering is valid? They should be.
What are their zero-tolerance policies?
We take a “one strike and you’re out” position when carriers have been tagged with a double brokering comment on any monitoring platform.
We also reject carriers if they don’t:
- Have at least two recorded DOT inspections (though we look for carriers that average at least one-and-a-quarter to two inspections per truck in their fleet)
- List the equipment necessary for our particular project
- Have at least 90 days of continuous authority
- Have insurance in place that will be active at least 10 days beyond the load delivery date—that means cargo, auto, and general liability insurance, as well as trailer interchange and reefer breakdown insurance, if applicable
Securing transportation in-house? Proceed with caution
If you have the time, advanced tools, and expertise to contract directly with carriers, more power to you.
Just be mindful to watch for these motor carrier red flags:
- A DOT number change
- Contact information that’s been altered in the last 60 days
- Operating only one or two trucks (that doesn’t mean owner-operators can’t be a great partner for you, but it does mean do your due diligence)
I also suggest slowing your roll when working with new carriers. MC numbers are being sold at a blistering pace these days.
That’s why I recommend that you:
- Engage new carriers over the phone and ask lots of questions (this goes for any carrier you’ve worked with for three months or less)
- Require them to implement real-time freight tracking for your loads
- Don’t share any load details until you’ve called their driver and confirmed they work for the carrier and were assigned to your shipment
This work takes time. It takes investment. But in this current environment, it pays to operate from a zero-trust posture, and give that bleeding ulcer a break. So, quadruple check every partner. And, yes, that goes for us, too. (We welcome it, by the way.) The threat landscape is just too vast and increasingly more difficult to navigate by the day to do otherwise.
Have deeper questions about how we vet our carriers?
I’m passionate about this work, and I’d love to talk about it with you. Connect with me.