Fuel for Thought

Over and Under

Ever take that good paying load only to find out later that you were underpaid? Most of us who have been in business for a while as an owner operator have run into this a once or thrice. How did you handle the situation? Many drivers will get angry and accuse the broker of trying to cheat them. These drivers seem to believe everyone is out to get them. They seem to believe that all brokers are shady and trying to pull a fast one on any unsuspecting driver.

Some will just make a call, send an email or text to the broker and get the mistake remedied. Mistakes happen. If you cannot give the broker the benefit of the doubt when mistakes occur, perhaps you shouldn’t be doing business with said broker. More times than not, it was a simple typo, or missed key or even a miscommunication on either one’s part.

What about those times when you took that load and were overpaid for it? How did you handle that situation? Were you angry at the broker for foisting additional funds at you? How dare they overpay you! Probably not. If you believe that underpayment is the result of shady brokers, then you probably also believe that you are entitled to that excess payment and say nothing, hoping they won’t notice. You are not entitled to it and they will notice. Then your reputation, your honesty, your integrity is in question. Sometimes, overpayment is the result of the broker getting more than you asked for on the load and is giving you a part of it. More often than not, it is a simple typo on the rate confirmation. In any case, this is where you can show some integrity and discuss the excess funds with the broker and return what is theirs. They may not be aware of the mistake. Just like you don’t want to lose revenue on a load, neither does the broker. Have an honest relationship with your business associates and all will prosper together.

See you down the road,

Greg