[GMAN]

There are some brokers who take a flat fee rather than a commission. Those are not in the majority. I have known a couple who charge a flat rate of $50 or $100 per load regardless of what the load pays.

I think it would be a great idea to have all the brokers or shippers post the rate that they want to pay in order to move a particular load. It would save a lot of time. If the shippers had access to the same boards, then they would know right away if the broker was keeping too much of the money.

I agree that some brokers are profiteering at the expense of the carrier and shipper. I don't think the shippers are paying less to move loads, in most cases. I believe the brokers are taking advantage of the current situation and those who don't know how to run a business. Much of the current problem with rates would correct themselves if the owner operators and carriers would just let the cheap loads sit. It is better to deadhead out of a bad area rather than take a cheap load so that you can buy the fuel to move. If you cannot afford to deadhead out of a bad area, then you are hauling freight too cheap.

In a way I would like to see brokers limited to a flat rate of the actual rate. My problem with doing this through legislation is that it gets the government more involved in this business. It could open up Pandora's box. By imposing fee regulations on brokers, it would almost be like going back to when freight rates were regulated. I am not sure that is something we really want to see happen. If freight rates were regulated, some of us might be hauling for less than we have been able to negotiate on our own.

I am not sure that full disclosure on the rate confirmation would not accomplish the same thing as long as it was also made available to the shipper. Sometimes, the broker doesn't want the carrier to discuss the rate with the shipper or receiver. I wonder why? :roll:

[arky]

What I would like to see happen is a new type of company start up that charges a fixed fee.

I had a guy just a while back talking to me about starting ap a small brokerage. He was a driver and got forced out of the industry by a medical condition. I mentioned to him that it seemed to me a flat fee would be fair. I would think that the time and work involved in processing a load would be about the same. The time spent finding and dispatching loads would be the largest variable?

[ironeagle_2006]

Instead of a flat rate make them disclose what the TRUE rate of the load is then are they the first second or thrid broker to get the load. Also make it a Federal reg that what the Rate is to the Broker appear on the Bill of Lading plus on the Confirmation sheet and if the Confirmation sheet is lower the Broker has their Authrity pulled and also shows the original carrier it went thru.

[Dispatch_This]

Here's how I see it:
If you decide to sell your house, would you use a Real Estate Broker that refuses to tell you what the buyer is willing to pay?
Would you invest in stocks if prices were not listed publicly, only Stockbrokers knew the seller's price?
It's hard to put a value on your services when you don't know what's on the table.
I support making brokered transactions transparent.

[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Dispatch_This

Here's how I see it:
If you decide to sell your house, would you use a Real Estate Broker that refuses to tell you what the buyer is willing to pay?
Would you invest in stocks if prices were not listed publicly, only Stockbrokers knew the seller's price?
It's hard to put a value on your services when you don't know what's on the table.
I support making brokered transactions transparent.

Apples and oranges.

When you are selling a house, you are setting the price you want to get for the house, and the real estate broker's job is to try to get you that price. When you are using a trucking broker, the load broker is selling you a load for the price you agree to. They are not the same thing.

Now if you'd like a better comparison, a load broker is like a house reseller. The house reseller comes in, buys a house, and turns it over for a profit. A load broker comes in, "buys" a load, and turns it over for a profit. It isn't your right to know what the seller of the house purchased it for, just as it isn't your right to know what price the load broker "purchased" the load for.

I find all of this somewhat amusing, because one of the things that the independents pride themselves on is that they are just that - independent. They answer to nobody but themselves. But at the same time, they don't want to be too independent, and want someone to take some of the risk away for them. You want the freedom of being an independent, but you want the security of being leased. I say you can't have it both ways. If you're concerned about brokers eating up too much profit from a load, then go lease on with a company where your rates are better regulated.

[Dispatch_This]

Nope. Can't agree with that. Freight brokers, by law, can only function as a disinterested third party. They can't "buy" the load and then "sell" it. And claiming that a homebuyer has no right to ask the seller what he originally paid is irrelevent. It's akin to a trucker asking a shipper how much he spends to manufacture his product so the trucker can determine his rate.

We're talking about the third parties who handle these transactions. Real estate and listed securities brokers are heavily regulated because, historically, these markets attract scammers and thieves.

Congress did a half-a** job when they created property broker regulations in 1980. The laws were too general in scope, and virtually never enforced. That's a big part of the problem, right there.

[solo379]

For those, who want to "cap" the rates, or profiting of any kind, i suggest you move to a communists countries. You might like that! :roll:
For me, "free market" and "antitrust law", is fair enough! 8)

[no_worries]

I have to agree with dispatch on his assessment of how a broker was meant to operate. A real estate broker's primary concern is to close a deal. Getting you what you want obviously helps that along, but closing the deal is the only way they make money because they're working on a fixed commission. However, many brokers approach their business just as Rev described. While they don't actually take possession, they often conduct their business as if they had; getting as much as they can from the shipper and giving as little as possible to the carrier with little thought given to their intended role of facilitating transactions and bringing increased efficiency to the marketplace.

[Rev.Vassago]

Originally Posted by Dispatch_This

Nope. Can't agree with that. Freight brokers, by law, can only function as a disinterested third party. They can't "buy" the load and then "sell" it.

I wasn't speaking literally. :roll:

And claiming that a homebuyer has no right to ask the seller what he originally paid is irrelevent. It's akin to a trucker asking a shipper how much he spends to manufacture his product so the trucker can determine his rate.

Exactly. So why is it relevant to you what the broker is getting from the shipper for the load? If you have negotiated a rate for the load that you are comfortable with, then the broker has done his or her job. If the rate is something you aren't comfortable with, then don't haul the load. But there is no law, nor should there be a law, that says the broker has to give you what you want to haul the load. If that is too much of a hassle, then go lease to a company where every load pays the same.

[Dispatch_This]

Geez. I give up. :roll: