The first 90 days with a new MC are genuinely hard. Brokers don't call back. Insurance takes days to show up in the systems they check. We can't promise you a load on day one — but we can cut weeks off how long you sit waiting.
What You're Up Against
Getting your MC number was the easy part. Nobody tells you that half the freight system is built to ignore new carriers until they've proven themselves. Here's what you're actually dealing with.
Most brokers have their systems set to reject carriers under 6 months old. It's not a person making the call — it's a filter you never see. You submit a load request and get silence.
Carrier411 and RMIS can take 3–7 days to reflect your insurance certificate. Brokers check those systems. If your cert hasn't propagated, you look uninsured even when you're not.
Every broker needs a W-9, carrier agreement, and COI before they'll book you. Each broker has their own version. Without help, you're doing individual setup calls for weeks before your first load.
Some brokers specifically target new authorities knowing you need the work. They offer $1.80/mile on lanes that pay $2.40. Without market data, you don't know the difference.
How We Actually Help
We're not going to tell you we can get you loaded on day one. We can't always do that. What we can do is cut weeks off the timeline and keep you from making expensive mistakes during the hardest part.
These aren't brokers you find on a public load board. They're direct relationships we've built specifically with the understanding that new authorities need their first shot. They know the RMIS propagation lag and won't reject you because of it.
We build and distribute your carrier packet to our primary broker network. W-9, carrier agreements, COI — handled. Most new carriers we onboard are set up with 20–30 brokers by the next business day.
Amazon's load board accepts carriers with 90+ days authority and processes thousands of loads per week. Rates are non-negotiable ($1.80–$2.40/mile) but consistent. It's the most reliable freight source for new carriers while your broker reputation builds.
The extra 1% covers the additional onboarding work specific to new carriers. It drops automatically at 6 months of active operation — no paperwork, no renegotiation required.
Before We Can Search
We can't search loads until these are in place. Most new carriers can get through this list in 1–2 weeks. If you're stuck on any of them, we'll walk you through it on your onboarding call.
MC number active on FMCSA
Check fmcsa.dot.gov
Auto liability insurance certificate
Minimum $750K
Cargo insurance certificate
Minimum $100K
BOC-3 filing complete
Blanket filing
ELD device installed and registered
If you're missing any of these, don't apply yet — get them in place first. The application takes 5 minutes. The prep takes 1–2 weeks if you're starting from scratch.
The Reality of the First 90 Days
FMCSA data shows 40–50% of new motor carriers fail within 18 months. Most of them don't fail because they were bad carriers. They fail because they couldn't get loaded fast enough in the early weeks to cover their costs. The freight system genuinely is stacked against new carriers — carrier monitoring services flag your MC, insurance takes days to propagate, and load boards are competing with 400,000+ other carriers. None of that is unfair, exactly. It's just how the industry works. The question is whether you have a plan for navigating it or you're hoping the phone rings.
The strategy that works for most new carriers in the first 60–90 days: Amazon Relay as your base freight source. Amazon's load board accepts carriers at 90 days with proper insurance, and it processes thousands of loads per week across their fulfillment network. Rates are posted — $1.80–$2.40/mile, non-negotiable — but they're consistent and available now. While Amazon builds your load history, we're working our broker relationships in parallel to get you set up for when your authority seasons and more freight options open up.
We have 40+ brokers who specifically work with new authorities. These aren't public load board relationships — they're direct contacts who understand that new carriers need a first chance and won't auto-reject you for being under 6 months old. We also track the insurance propagation timeline so we know exactly when your profile is going to appear correctly in Carrier411 and RMIS. That timing matters more than most new carriers realize — getting in front of a broker two days too early can cost you a load that goes to someone else.
New Authority Questions
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Learn more →The first 90 days are hard for everyone. We can't guarantee day-one loads — but we can get you set up faster, avoid the rejection mistakes, and find you freight when the phone isn't ringing.
Apply Now — New Authority Welcome