What does a freight broker do?

In 2013, truckers transported close to 15 billion tons of cargo. Reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that by 2040, those numbers are expected to grow up to to 18.79 billion tons. Shipping is growing constantly with the way people have started shopping mostly online throughout the past ten years.

Freight shipping is done using carriers and businesses shipping products. A broker system can arrange transport for all of the items in your inventory and act as the sole middle man dealing with the ins and outs of shipping. A non-asset based freight company doesn’t own any of the assets like warehouses and trucks, they simply organize the shipping for companies by maintaining the transportation management software or brokerware and ensure everything gets from point A to point B. Non-asset based freight brokers can access the shipments and trucks to ensure everything is being handled appropriately.

When planning to use a freight company for your shipping needs you need to consider a few things before signing contracts. How long has the freight broker been handling shipping for other clients? How many trucking companies do they have working with them and if there is ever an issue do they have other trucks backing them to ensure deliveries are done? Do they have proper insurance coverage for their trucking partners in case of theft or accidents? Are there any complaints on the company that you can locate online? If you ever need to access your freight is the company able to assist you with your needs? Do they use reliable brokerware to get the job done?

Freight brokers have been doing business for years an many of them have excellent track records. To ensure your freight is being shipped safely make sure to ask the right questions before getting into a long term commitment. Freight brokers use certain software called brokerware to ensure all packages are shipped and delivered accordingly without question. Shipment tracking integration merges existing shipments into one simple to use program that maintains new and old shipments. Transportation brokers are currently a growing market and will continue to thrive as online shopping continues to be a booming success.