10 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Freight Broker

Choosing a freight broker is a decision that affects your supply chain performance, your costs, and — in categories like cannabis, pharmaceuticals, or fresh produce — your regulatory compliance. Yet most shippers choose brokers based on a single quote rather than a meaningful evaluation. These ten questions will help you distinguish brokers who can genuinely support your business from those who are simply the lowest number on your screen.

The 10 Questions

• 1. How do you vet the carriers on your network? What are your minimum requirements? — A serious broker has documented carrier onboarding standards including insurance minimums, safety ratings, and references.
• 2. Have you moved freight in this category before? — Cannabis, pharmaceuticals, and produce all have specific handling and compliance requirements. Generic experience is not the same as category experience.
• 3. How do you handle a problem shipment? Walk me through a recent example. — Look for accountability, proactivity, and a track record of resolving issues rather than deflecting them.
• 4. What does your tracking and communication process look like? — Understand exactly when and how you will receive updates. 'We track all loads' is not an answer.
• 5. What happens if the carrier you book can't make the pickup? — Service failures are part of freight. A strong broker has a process and a backup carrier network.
• 6. How are your rates structured? Are there fees outside the freight quote? — Fuel surcharges, accessorial charges, and broker margins should be transparent.
• 7. Can you handle both LTL and FTL on my key lanes? — A broker with flexibility across service types provides more options as your shipment profile changes.
• 8. Who is my point of contact, and what are their hours? — Freight doesn't stop at 5 PM. Know who answers the phone on a Saturday night.
• 9. Do you carry contingent cargo insurance? — This matters if your carrier's insurance has gaps or disputes arise on a claim.
• 10. What do your carrier relationships look like on my specific lanes? — A broker with established relationships on your lanes can find capacity when spot market options dry up.

What Good Answers Look Like

Good answers are specific, not generic. A broker who can cite actual carrier vetting standards, explain their communication protocol step-by-step, and describe a real service failure they resolved has demonstrated operational substance. A broker who answers every question with 'we do that' without specifics is telling you they haven't thought about it.