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Read itNew authority
Why brokers will not load a brand-new MC number
It is not personal and it is not arbitrary. It is an insurance requirement most carriers never see, and there are useful things to do with the wait.
New authorityBy BSG Carriers·Published ·3 min read
It is usually their insurer, not them
A new carrier gets their MC number, calls twenty brokers, and finds most of them will not book a load. The common explanation — that brokers do not trust new carriers — is only half right.
The bigger reason is that many brokers carry contingent cargo insurance, and those policies frequently exclude or restrict carriers whose authority is under a certain age. Ninety days is the figure that comes up most often. A broker loading a brand-new MC may be doing so uninsured, which is not a judgement about you but a condition of their own cover.
There is a fraud element too. Double-brokering and identity theft in freight tend to run through freshly created authorities, so age is used as a crude filter. Crude, but not irrational.
What actually opens the door
Age matters, but it is not the only thing being checked.
- A clean FMCSA record — active authority, no out-of-service orders, and a BOC-3 on file.
- Insurance at the limits brokers expect, typically $1M auto liability and $100K cargo, with certificates filed correctly.
- A complete, professional carrier packet: W-9, authority letter, insurance certificate, signed agreement.
- A working phone number answered by a person. More setups stall on this than anyone admits.
- Time. Most restrictions ease at 90 days and again at six months.
Useful things to do with the wait
Get set up with every broker who will take a packet now, even if they will not load you yet. Carrier setup is administrative and slow, and having it finished means you can take a load the day the restriction lifts rather than starting the paperwork then.
Find the brokers who do work with new authorities. They exist, they are not all bad, and some will take a new MC with the right insurance and a direct conversation. The rates may be less good; the point is building a record.
Work out your cost per mile properly. A new carrier who does not know their break-even will take a bad load out of anxiety in the first month, and that is a more expensive mistake than waiting.
Consider running under another carrier’s authority in the interim if you need revenue now. It is less profitable and you control less, but it keeps the truck moving while the clock runs.
What a dispatcher can and cannot do about it
01
Cannot make your authority older
Nobody can. Any service claiming to get a brand-new MC past a 90-day insurance restriction is describing something you should not want to be part of.
02
Can target the brokers who will load you
Knowing which ones work with new authorities saves weeks of calling the ones that will not.
03
Can make the packet arrive complete
Most setup delays are missing documents. A packet that needs no follow-up gets processed faster.
04
Can start the record that ends the problem
On-time deliveries and straightforward communication are what make month four different from month one.
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