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Which Should You Do First –
Start a Trucking Company or a Freight Brokerage?
Start a Trucking Company or a Freight Brokerage?
Many callers want to start a brokerage as well as a trucking company. That’s great! But, they don’t know if they should first buy trucks and start trucking or should they start and learn their brokerage first.
There’s no clear cut answer but here are a few comments. If you want to start a trucking company, here’s what you can expect to deal with:
- Safety issues including the reporting of accidents,
- Hours-of-service (HOS) issues and rest periods,
- Learn electronic onboard recorders,
- Perhaps take some entry-level training,
- Learn about fuel-mileage standards,
- Ensuring you have adequate pay,
- Making plans for the lack of parking space for big rigs,
- Maybe doing hair follicle testing for drug cheaters,
- Dealing with speed governors,
- Maybe doing some sleep apnea testing,
- Learning diesel emission standards,
- Dealing with pressure to work more than you want because of low capacity,
- On-going truck maintenance,
- Dealing with driver distraction,
- Maybe dispatching others or driving in bad weather conditions,
- No fixed hours,
- Lack of exercise,
- Maybe dealing with an unhealthy diet,
- Delays at customer or delivery facilities,
- Increasing insurance costs, etc., etc., etc.
NOW –
If you want to start a freight brokerage first, here’s what you’ll need:
- Your broker authority – DOT# & MC#,
- Your BOC-3,
- Your UCR,
- Your trust fund or surety bond, and
- Adequate knowledge of how to broker freight. That’s it.
That’s it!
Some experts say deal with the simple stuff first.
Call me with any questions or if you are ready to get started.