Why we book direct instead of re-brokering

We are the carrier of record on our leased-on trucks. That one fact decides what we are allowed to quote, and what we turn down.

Author: The LineHaul desk
Published: 11 Aug 2026
Updated: 11 Aug 2026
Read time: 7 min

In short

We are a motor carrier, not a broker. Owner-operators lease onto our authority, which makes us the carrier of record for those trucks, so the only freight we can quote is freight those trucks can actually run.

The license question decides everything

A broker arranges freight for a fee and needs a broker license to do it. A motor carrier hauls the freight itself, on its own authority, and does not. We chose the second one, and everything on this site follows from that choice.

When an owner-operator leases onto our authority, we become the carrier of record for that truck, and that truck is capacity we can offer. A driver running under their own MC number is a client we dispatch for, not capacity we resell.

What that means when you ask us for a truck

We quote the equipment we actually control. If the lane, the date and the trailer type do not line up with a truck on our authority, we say no rather than shop the load to somebody else and take a cut. That is the honest version, and it costs us bookings.

The upside for a shipper is a single accountable carrier: one MC number on the paperwork, one desk to call, and nobody in the middle re-pricing the freight.

Where the margin goes instead

In a brokered move the truck sees the rate after somebody else's margin. Booked direct onto our own fleet that margin does not exist, so a shipper can pay a competitive all-in rate and the driver still sees more than brokered spot. We take a flat 12% of linehaul, the same 12% on every load.

This is not a new invention. It is the arrangement that lets all three sides come out ahead, and it only works while we stay inside the capacity we really have.

If the lane, the date and the trailer type do not line up with a truck on our authority, we say no rather than shop the load to somebody else and take a cut.

Questions we get

Are you a broker?

No. A broker arranges freight for a fee and needs a broker license to do it. We haul on our own authority, which is a different thing and a different set of obligations.

What happens if you cannot cover my load?

We decline it. If the lane, the date and the trailer type do not line up with a truck on our authority, we say no rather than pass it to somebody else and take a cut.

Who is the carrier of record on my freight?

We are, for every truck leased onto our authority. That means one MC number on the paperwork, one desk to call, and nobody in the middle re-pricing the load.

Does a driver on their own MC number count as your capacity?

No. A driver running under their own authority is a client we dispatch for, not capacity we can offer a shipper.

The rule behind this

Lease-on or your own authority →In the resource library · last checked 15 Aug 2026