Is a broker rate confirmation a binding contract?

It is the agreement covering that particular load, and it operates under the broker-carrier agreement signed at setup. Where the two conflict, the master agreement generally governs.

Why does detention sometimes go unpaid?

Usually because the rate confirmation's evidence requirements were not met. Most require documented arrival and departure times, reported within a specified window, before detention is payable.

What is TONU on a rate confirmation?

Truck ordered not used: compensation when a carrier is dispatched to a load that then does not happen. If no amount is listed on the confirmation, it is unlikely to be paid.

How to Read a Broker Rate Confirmation Before You Sign

The rate is the first line and the least interesting one. Everything that decides whether the load makes money is further down, usually in smaller type.

What the document is

A rate confirmation is the contract for one load. It sits under whatever broker-carrier agreement you signed when you set up with them, and where the two conflict, that master agreement usually wins. Read it once, properly, when you sign up — it is the document nobody reads and the one that governs everything.

The eight things to check, in order

1. The rate, and what is included in it

Is fuel surcharge included in the number or paid separately? A flat all-in rate and a linehaul-plus-surcharge rate are not comparable at a glance. See how fuel surcharges work.

2. The miles

Brokers quote from routing software, which rarely matches your actual miles. Check whether the rate is a flat amount or a rate per mile, and if per mile, whose mileage. Then work it out against your miles, including the deadhead to get there. That is your real rate per mile, and it is what our calculator compares against your cost.

3. Detention: after how long, how much, and what triggers it

This is where most of the money is lost. Look for three things: the free time before detention starts, the hourly amount, and what evidence is required. Many confirmations require arrival and departure times documented and reported within a set window, and pay nothing without them.

Detention terms are worth more than a few cents on the rate. Two hours free and $50 an hour is a different load from four hours free and $25 an hour, on the same linehaul. The clock is what destroys your 14-hour window, and the window is your earning capacity.

4. Accessorials and who approves them

Layover, TONU (truck ordered not used), extra stops, driver assist, lumper fees, pallet exchange. Two questions each time: is it listed with an amount, and does it require prior written approval? An accessorial that needs approval and was not approved will not be paid, however reasonable it was.

5. Penalties

Late delivery fines, missed appointment charges, deductions for rejected freight. Read what the broker can take off the rate and under what circumstances. A load with a large late penalty and a tight appointment is a load priced for risk you may not want.

6. Liability for the freight

What cargo coverage is required, whether there is a deductible you carry, and any clause making you liable beyond your cargo policy limit. High-value freight on a standard $100,000 cargo policy is an exposure, not an opportunity.

7. Payment terms

Net 30 is normal. Check what documents must be submitted and by when — a late paperwork submission can push you into the next cycle. If you use factoring, check that the confirmation does not conflict with your factoring agreement, particularly around assignment and notices.

8. Double brokering and re-brokering clauses

Whether the load can be passed on, and what happens if it was passed to you. If the broker on the confirmation is not the one who has the contract with the shipper, your claim for payment can get complicated in ways that are entirely outside your control.

Checks to run before you accept, not after

The broker's authority and bond. You can look up their operating authority status. A broker without active authority is a problem you do not want to discover at delivery.
Their payment record. Ask other carriers, or use whatever credit information your factor provides — credit checking on brokers is one of the genuine services a factor gives you.
That the confirmation matches what was agreed on the phone. Discrepancies are sometimes errors and sometimes not. Either way, the document is what counts.

What to do when something is wrong

Ask for it to be corrected and re-sent before you load. Once you are under the freight your negotiating position is gone. A broker who will not amend a confirmation before loading is telling you something useful about how the rest of the relationship will go.

And keep everything: the confirmation, the bill of lading, arrival and departure times, photographs, and every message. Payment disputes are decided by documentation, and the carrier is usually the party without any.

Frequently asked questions

Is a rate confirmation a contract?

It is the agreement for that specific load, sitting under the broker-carrier agreement you signed at setup. Where they conflict, the master agreement generally governs.

What is TONU?

Truck ordered not used — compensation when you are dispatched and the load does not happen. Check whether it is listed with an amount, because if it is not listed you are unlikely to be paid it.

Why was my detention not paid?

Most often because the evidence requirements in the confirmation were not met: documented in and out times, reported within the stated window.

Reading a Rate Confirmation Before You Sign It