Should I require a credit card or retainer from new shippers?

Retainers (a few thousand depending on your load value) make sense for new shippers with borderline credit or asking for longer payment terms. Credit card upfront is rare in freight, but some brokerages use net 15 or payment-before-shipment for unproven accounts. The tradeoff is less risk but higher sales friction. Your choice depends on working capital and risk appetite.

How do I handle a shipper who pays consistently late but is otherwise a good account?

Don't ignore it — the pattern is the data. If they consistently pay in 45 days instead of 30, that's how they operate. Tighten terms (net 15 or require a retainer), charge a premium for the carrying cost, or reduce the load value you'll extend. The pattern almost never changes on its own.

What should I do if a shipper asks for net 60 instead of net 30?

Ask why. A shipper requesting longer terms is asking for free financing. Counter by checking their D&B and references closely, and if you approve it, charge a premium or require a retainer. Longer terms are only okay if the credit is solid and you're priced to cover the financing cost and the risk.

How many late invoices before I stop working with a shipper?

Set a policy and keep it consistent. Many brokers use three: first is a warning, second is a tighten-terms conversation, third is done. Some have less patience, some more. The point is applying the rule objectively instead of bending it for volume. Shipper credit matters more than shipper size.

What's the fastest way to collect an unpaid invoice?

First: call within 15 days and confirm the invoice hit them. If unpaid at 30 days past due, send a formal demand letter and escalate. Small claims makes sense for amounts under a mid-five-figure amount depending on your state. Beyond that, a collection agency takes 30–40% of what they recover. Know your walk-away point — chasing every invoice isn't worth your time.

Can I vet a shipper's credit without running a D&B report?

You can do a lighter version: call references, ask direct questions about payment history and current terms, and check public records for liens and judgments through your state courthouse or secretary of state. But a D&B report gives you standardized third-party payment history that's hard to fake, costs a modest amount, and is worth it for any new shipper. For tiny shippers with no D&B, lean hard on references and watch the first few loads closely.

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How to Vet a Shipper's Credit Before Hauling Their Freight

A shipper's credit is invisible until it isn't — and by then you're staring at an uncovered load, a carrier that didn't get paid, and your credibility on the line. Brokers and small asset carriers lose real money every year because they front freight to shippers with soft credit, nonexistent payment history, or a pattern of slow pays. Some of it's inevitable — freight is a trust business. But a lot of it is preventable with a hard look at credit and terms before the first load rolls.

The painful part is that most brokers and carriers have almost no process for vetting a new shipper's credit. You get a cold email from a potential customer, the terms sound fine, the first load moves, and then the invoice sits unpaid for 45 days past terms. Or worse, they ghost entirely and you're chasing an uncovered invoice that'll probably never come in. By then, you've already fronted the freight, the carrier isn't getting paid, and the damage is done.

This guide covers what you actually need to do before you haul: how to read a Dun & Bradstreet report, what questions to ask a new shipper about their payment history, how to negotiate terms that protect your cash flow, what red flags mean walk away, and how to structure the first trial load so if something goes sideways, the financial hit is small. The goal is simple: never let a shipper's credit surprise you after the freight is already rolling.

Why shipper credit matters: the cost of not knowing until it's too late

Most brokers know the operational side of freight inside out — BOLs, tracking, detention, accessorials. Shipper credit is the piece that lives in the background until it explodes. A shipper with solid credit pays you 30 days net like clockwork, which means your cash cycles: you move the load, invoice them, 30 days later you pay the carrier from that revenue, and the margin flows to you. A shipper with soft credit stretches to 45 or 60 days, or they pay in chunks, or they audit every invoice before they'll pay. That eats working capital and forces you to pay your carriers on better terms than you're getting paid — which is money out of your pocket.

For asset carriers, it's even more critical. If you run your own trucks, you're fully fronting the load. A shipper who doesn't pay is directly taking cash out of your operation. You covered the fuel, you put the driver on the road, you wore the wear-and-tear, and if the shipper goes sideways, that's money you won't recover. The first 30 to 90 days of a new shipper relationship is the riskiest time — you haven't moved much freight yet, so the pattern isn't visible, but the financial exposure is concrete if they default.

Check credit before the first load: D&B reports, payment history, and red flags in the record

A Dun & Bradstreet report (or equivalent like Experian or Equifax) is the baseline. It costs a modest amount and takes 15 minutes to read. You're looking for three things: payment history, credit utilization, and public judgments. A company with a clean D&B has paid its vendors reliably, doesn't max out credit limits, and doesn't have liens, lawsuits, or tax liens sitting in the public record. A company with consistent late payments, high utilization, or public judgments is telling you something — either cash flow problems, operational chaos, or they simply don't pay on time as a matter of practice.

The payment history section is the highest-signal part. Look at the last 24 months, not just the last 90 days. If they have a few late payments three years ago but clean history since, that's probably recovered management. If they have consistent late payments across multiple vendors — paying in 45 days when terms are 30 — that's a pattern. Search the Records section carefully: if there's a UCC filing, judgment, or tax lien, those are hard flags about solvency or legal problems. You don't need to be a credit analyst to use a D&B report, but don't ignore it. And don't assume an unknown shipper with no report history is fine — it might mean they're too small to have a report, or it might mean they're deliberately staying off-grid. Either way, that's a yellow flag that means digging deeper elsewhere.

Ask the hard questions: references, payment history, and terms in writing before load one

Before you take a first load from a new shipper, ask them directly about their payment practices. Not in an accusatory way — in a 'let's make sure we're aligned' way. Here's what you're asking for: the names and contact info of three to five carriers or brokers they've worked with recently, their normal payment terms, any history of disputed invoices, and honestly, whether they've ever gone dark on a payment. The question isn't whether they've had payment issues in the past — most good companies have — it's how they handle them.

Call the references yourself. Don't rely on them emailing you a reference; call the carrier or broker on the phone and ask: 'How long have you been working with this shipper? What's your experience with their payment — do they pay on time, on terms? Any invoices ever sit or get disputed? Would you work with them again?' You'll get a real answer on the phone that a form email won't give you. If they're hesitant, that's information. If they dodge, that's information. If they say 'they pay fine but slow, like 45 days every time,' that's data you need going in.

Red flags that should make you pause: Any shipper who won't discuss payment terms or put them in writing is waving a flag. Any shipper whose D&B shows consistent late payments but claims they'll be 'different with you' is betting you're naive. Any shipper evasive about references — 'we've worked with so many carriers I can't remember names' — is telling you they don't want you calling around. A shipper asking for terms longer than standard (net 60 when you quote net 30). A shipper that wants to 'start billing you after the first few loads.' A shipper whose website looks like it was built in 2009 and whose company has zero Google presence. None of these are automatic deal-killers, but they're all reasons to move slower and require more proof before you give them preferred pricing or better terms.

Trial loads and payment guardrails: test without betting the farm

The first load is the test. Most shippers are honest and the load ships fine. But if there's a problem — a dispute, a delay, a character issue — you want the financial risk to be small. Use the trial load to verify three things: that the shipper actually exists where they claim, that their freight and specs are real, and that they pay their invoice on the agreed-upon terms.

Start with smaller freight or a normal-value lane. Don't pick their 'really big load' for the trial; pick something that lets them prove themselves at manageable scale. Watch how they communicate — are they responsive, or do messages disappear? Do they dispute every invoice line-item or do they pay cleanly? Do they request a rate adjustment mid-load or after? These patterns show up immediately on trial loads and they usually continue. Trust the pattern.

Set a payment deadline and watch it obsessively. If they're supposed to pay net 30 and you invoice on day one, the load should be paid by day 31. If they pay on day 45, or if they email on day 30 asking for an extension, that's the pattern you're going to see from here on out. Don't treat the first late payment as an accident. Treat it as the beginning of what they're probably going to do every time. If a shipper is consistently 15 days late on their first invoice, they're going to be 15 days late on their tenth.

Payment terms that protect your cash flow: put it in writing before the first load moves

The standard freight agreement says: Net 30 days from invoice date, invoice due within 24 hours of delivery, and a late fee (usually a monthly percentage) if payment falls past due. Don't assume these terms — write them into your shipper agreement or send a confirmation email listing them before the first load. The shipper should sign off on terms before the load ships.

Consider a retainer or deposit for a new shipper if your margin is tight or if you're extending significant credit terms. A retainer isn't universal — many shippers will balk at it — but for a company that's unknown, borderline on credit, or asking for longer terms (like net 45), a small deposit (a few thousand depending on your typical load value) is insurance. It signals to them that you're serious about payment, and it reduces your loss if they default on the first few loads.

Some brokerages require payment before the load moves or net 15 days for new shippers or smaller accounts. This cuts your credit risk to near zero, but it reduces how competitive you can be against brokers offering net 30. Know your tradeoff and be explicit about it upfront. Don't let terms stay fuzzy or 'see how it goes' — that's how you end up in disputes over when payment was due, what the invoice date means, and whether late fees apply.

Monitor and collect: catch tightening early and know when to walk

Credit doesn't stay static. A shipper that's solid for six months can hit cash flow problems in month seven. The way you catch it is by watching the pattern: do they still pay on day 30, or are they creeping to day 35, day 40, day 45? Are they starting to ask for payment flexibility or invoice date adjustments? Are they slow-rolling disputes on invoices that are clearly correct? These are early signs that credit is tightening. Keep a simple record: shipper name, their standard payment terms, when you invoice, and when they actually pay. Over 10 or 20 loads, a pattern emerges. If their average payment time is creeping from 30 days to 45 days, you're watching credit degrade in real time. That's the signal to tighten terms with them or reduce the load value you'll extend until payment tightens back up.

If a shipper's payment ever slips past your late-payment threshold, don't wait. Call them the day after the deadline. Don't be hostile — 'I noticed invoice 12345 is at 31 days now; can I help expedite this?' — but be direct. A legitimate shipper will process it immediately or explain a real delay. A shipper that gets defensive or dodges tells you the problem is attitude, not accident.

When an invoice goes uncollected, act fast. Within 15 days of the due date, follow up once by email and once by phone. If still unpaid within 30 days past due, escalate: formal demand letter, late-fee application, and possibly collection agency or small claims court depending on the amount. Know your walk-away point: for a smaller invoice amount, pursuing it through collections is probably not worth your time. For a larger invoice amount, it might be. The biggest lesson most brokers learn the hard way: the first late shipper is a warning sign that your credit process is weak, not an accident. Use it as a signal to tighten your vetting on the next one. The shipper that doesn't pay is a sunk cost; what matters is that it never happens twice to you in a row.

Most brokers and carriers lose money on shipper credit every year — not from one catastrophic default, but from death by a thousand slow pays and disputes that should never have happened. The pattern matters more than the accident. If shipper payment data flows naturally through your CRM — who they are, their payment history, average days-to-pay, any disputes — you'll catch credit tightening before the damage piles up. GotFreight tracks shipper payment history automatically as part of the record, so you know at a glance which accounts are pulling cash flow and which are your best-paying customers. Start a free trial and let credit intelligence build as you book.

Get started — 100 credits, no card See pricing

Frequently asked questions

Should I require a credit card or retainer from new shippers?: Retainers (a few thousand depending on your load value) make sense for new shippers with borderline credit or asking for longer payment terms. Credit card upfront is rare in freight, but some brokerages use net 15 or payment-before-shipment for unproven accounts. The tradeoff is less risk but higher sales friction. Your choice depends on working capital and risk appetite.
How do I handle a shipper who pays consistently late but is otherwise a good account?: Don't ignore it — the pattern is the data. If they consistently pay in 45 days instead of 30, that's how they operate. Tighten terms (net 15 or require a retainer), charge a premium for the carrying cost, or reduce the load value you'll extend. The pattern almost never changes on its own.
What should I do if a shipper asks for net 60 instead of net 30?: Ask why. A shipper requesting longer terms is asking for free financing. Counter by checking their D&B and references closely, and if you approve it, charge a premium or require a retainer. Longer terms are only okay if the credit is solid and you're priced to cover the financing cost and the risk.
How many late invoices before I stop working with a shipper?: Set a policy and keep it consistent. Many brokers use three: first is a warning, second is a tighten-terms conversation, third is done. Some have less patience, some more. The point is applying the rule objectively instead of bending it for volume. Shipper credit matters more than shipper size.
What's the fastest way to collect an unpaid invoice?: First: call within 15 days and confirm the invoice hit them. If unpaid at 30 days past due, send a formal demand letter and escalate. Small claims makes sense for amounts under a mid-five-figure amount depending on your state. Beyond that, a collection agency takes 30–40% of what they recover. Know your walk-away point — chasing every invoice isn't worth your time.
Can I vet a shipper's credit without running a D&B report?: You can do a lighter version: call references, ask direct questions about payment history and current terms, and check public records for liens and judgments through your state courthouse or secretary of state. But a D&B report gives you standardized third-party payment history that's hard to fake, costs a modest amount, and is worth it for any new shipper. For tiny shippers with no D&B, lean hard on references and watch the first few loads closely.