bills of lading, load boards, picking up freight, what do I need to know?

If you go work as a company driver for a month, half of your questions will be answered. Another half will be answered after reading this thread http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...ellows-company-driver-independent-thread.html

 

did you not read his post ????? his is a hhg owner op with his own authority looking for regular to get him to hhg lanes. since he has a truck and his authority, what does he do park it while he goes company driver.

and to answer the op question, the vast majority of the time , you get your bills of lading from the customer you pick up the load from, the other times if you fill out your own bill, they are simple and not unlike what you do now, the old to and from , addresses, number of pallets or products, est weight and have customer and yourself sign them and signed on delivery, its relatively simple , and no I wouldn't search out floor loads.

 

I know nothing about HHG loads.
I get loads from "The Internet Truckstop" website. I call the broker/company that is listed as shipper. Usually when I get loaded the shipper has a BOL for me. If they don't I just fill out a blank BOL . the kind you buy in the truckstop. Have the receiver sign paperwork upon delivery and send with invoice to broker/company that hired me and wait to get paid. Sometimes I use a factoring company to get paid quicker and sometimes I just wait for broker to pay. Many companies that will pay within 10 days. Good luck.

 

It's always a good idea to keep some blank BOLs around, but shippers almost always provide pre-printed BOLs for you.

If you're not hauling hazmat, you probably won't ever have any issues, but here is the regulation:

§ 373.101: Motor carrier bills of lading.

Every motor common carrier shall issue a receipt or bill of lading for property tendered for transportation in interstate or foreign commerce containing the following information:
(a) Names of consignor and consignee.
(b) Origin and destination points.
(c) Number of packages.
(d) Description of freight.
(e) Weight, volume, or measurement of freight (if applicable to the rating of the freight).

For most general freight you'll want $1,000,000 automotive liability & $100,000 cargo insurance, but some brokers/shippers require more.

There isn't much for drop-frame vans on the load boards I use and most will assume a van is dock-height, but if you have a helper you may get away with some LTL stuff.

Make sure you update your MCS-150. At the least, you'll want to add "general freight" to the categories you haul...

You will also want to carry a laptop (or have someone at home/office with computer access) for getting set-up with new brokers. They will send you a carrier packet, you'll fill it out & return it along with things like:

certificate of authority
certificate of insurance naming the broker/shipper as additional insured
proof of worker's comp or an exemption
W9
voided check (for direct deposit)
references


When you deliver the load, you'll usually give the receiver one copy of the bill of lading and they will sign one copy for you to fax/email/mail back to the broker/shipper.

 

You link didn't work for me, but here is the blank BOL that I use:

http://www.bidcal.com/forms/Bill_Of_Lading.pdf

 

Ques: Broker-Carrier Contracts & then their Rate Agreements must be signed and exchanged between the two Companies before they may do business together. When your on the road...how do you do this?

Curious, how have you addressed your Quarterly IFTA filings + Estimated Tax Payments, (State & Federal). Also, how are you handling your IRP record keeping.

Have you found any States that Tax a Motor Carrier solely for driving thru their Great State, aside from IFTA or permitted States...NM, KY, NY, Or.?