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Requirements for Becoming a Freight Broker

Ever thought “How to become a freight broker?” Stop thinking and act now!

For some people, driving a truck is just ain’t their thing. Driving and all its tension and pressure can become very tiresome. If you are an employee in an office and you want to quit the nine-to-five schedule, it may be time for you become a freight broker.

A freight broker, also called a truck broker, acts as a middleman between the customer and a carrier. They earn commissions for their valuable services.

Many individuals have in fact become professional freight brokers, making great money and gone on to make a fantastic career out of this freight broker business. “The sky is the limit.”

However, certain requirements have to be considered before becoming a freight broker. Personal skills and office set up are the prerequisites before you can actually begin operating as a truck broker.

Requirements for Becoming a Freight Broker:

Broker Authority & Licensing

Each freight broker needs three items to obtain their authority:

A motor carrier number
Evidence of a $75,000 surety bond or trust fund
BOC-3 – obtaining legal representation in all 48 states

Another requirement that is relatively new is called the Unified Carrier Registration (UCR). The total costs on these registrations run about $1,400 to get started.

For those applicants who make a deposit of $65K to $75K into the trust fund, the administrative fee is either zero or a very low cost.

Office Set Up

To operate smoothly, each freight broker will need at least:

A reliable computer with preferably a high speed connection
Preferably two telephone lines – can be either land based, cell or Internet phone
Faxing capability – can be either land based or Internet fax
A filing cabinet

Personal skills

Telephone skills
Research skills – Internet and other
Negotiating skills
Organizational skills
Basic computer skills
Working knowledge of MSWord and MSExcel
Ability to sit for hours making phone calls
Enough capital to carry personal living expenses for a year or more

Here is more …..

A background in trucking is NOT required. Learning and applying good, fundamental business skills IS required
No background check is required
There is no age limit to get your broker authority
You can work off of your kitchen table – no one cares
Your broker authority is issued through the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) of the Dept of Transportation – there are no state licensing requirements.