Did You Know that the 2022 TIA 3PL Policy Forum is less than two months away? Whether you are a seasoned veteran of the Policy Forum or a potential first-time attendee, join fellow TIA Members in helping shape the future of the industry in the nation's capital. Very few groups in Washington, D.C. rival the strong support that TIA receives from its members or hold as many personal meetings with the Members of Congress themselves. Registration is now open!

• Secure a Booth at the 2023 Capital Ideas Conference & Exhibition TODAY
• Registration for the 2022 TIA Technovations Conference is Open!
• Join Us for the 2022 TIA 3PL Policy Forum!
• TIA Call to Action: C-TPAT Pilot Program Act

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Networking can be one of the most powerful tools for growing your business. The 2022 TIA Policy Forum offers you a chance to meet with your Members of Congress and other Industry peers. In this video, Rob Kemp, Treasurer of the TIA Board of Directors, discusses the importance of building a relationship with your Member of Congress. No one knows about the issues that are affecting your business more than you, so make sure your voice is heard. Register now!

Registration for the 2022 TIA Technovations Conference is open! Join us October 26-28 at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa for education sessions designed to help you implement, understand, and take control of the technology changes affecting your business; three Showcases with 21 presenters giving a “TECH TALK” on innovations that will advance the industry; and introducing TIA Shark Tank! Industry-leading technology startups will join us as they make their pitches to our panel of experts. Register today!

TIA 2023 Capital Ideas Conference & Exhibition booths are available! After the record-breaking 2022 conference, we anticipate booth space to sell out in 2023. As the industry’s marquee annual event, this is a once-a-year opportunity for you to interact with hundreds of freighter brokerages from across North America. APRIL 19-22, 2023 at Lowes Royal Pacific Resort in Orlando, Florida. Act now to reserve your booth in the TIA 2023 Capital Ideas Exhibition Hall. Click here for additional details or to view the exhibit hall floorplan.

TIA Call to Action: TIA Members, as you know over the last year and a half we have been working diligently on your behalf to include DOT licensed property brokers in the C-TPAT program, a public/private partnership focused on hardening the supply chain. Department of Homeland Security’s decision more than 10 years ago to exclude you from C-TPAT has cost you all countless business opportunities.

We have legislation to start to fix this. S.2322 has been passed in the Senate, and H.R. 6826 in the House of Representatives will allow 10 TIA members to be included in this program through a pilot program. This starts the process of opening up C-TPAT to any 3PL who would like to join.

Use this link, with a pre-written note, to call on your elected leaders in the House of Representatives to co-sponsor and support H.R 6826.

Write to your elected leaders today!

We have just updated the Member Resource Library with a new section devoted exclusively to whitepapers TIA has produced over the years. These resources are designed to help our members gain a better understanding of issues, trends, and developments in the industry as they navigate an increasingly crowded 3PL marketplace. The Member Resource Library also includes a collection of guidelines and frameworks, contracts, legal cases, and other resources to provide TIA Members with a knowledge bank for 3PL success.

You must be logged into the TIA website to access this library. Contact a member of TIA staff at
703.299.5700 if you need assistance.

You are in the trucking business, so what special information should you have on a credit report? Are you currently paying for information that has no relevance or value to you?

A Top Shelf credit report should provide data that relates directly to your type of business. What is NOT important here is how your prospective customer pays his mortgage—you are not a bank, not how they pay for forklifts—you are not an equipment supplier and certainly not how they pay for utilities because those are last resort obligations to not get paid. These areas of credit do speak for the overall business practices of a company, but collateralized debt is in a different category than freight bills.

The reality is that you as a freight broker or carrier have no entitlement to the goods onboard and the ugly
truth often shows with ongoing companies who don’t pay or slow pay freight bills…why not, there are
thousands of others available to haul their freight.

So, what’s most important to you…it should be to see how the prospective customer pays other trucking entities that are doing the same work you will be asked to do. “How they get paid is most likely how you will be paid.” There are other nuances to be gained in evaluating how your peers are faring with a customer, i.e., is their share of business declining while yours is increasing at a faster pace…that could be a sign they are cutting back due to non-payment and you could well be left ‘holding the bag.’

Another key factor is the average credit extended and do not be influenced by high credit. The shipper may have had a windfall or perhaps moved to a new location and in doing so ran higher than normal freight bills. Average credit is determined by a composite of all carriers and brokers reporting what they bill on a monthly basis. This number gives you a good measure of where your company should be for credit extension.

All credit reports give you company names, addresses and phone numbers, but only an industry trade
report will provide what documents you must submit for prompt payment. This is a must in the trucking industry because there are numerous documents ranging, from copy or original Bill of Lading, Signed Proof of Delivery (POD), perhaps copy of rate agreement, broker load number and of course the Freight Bill (Invoice).

Trucking is filled with other key factors that although not credit related are an important part of what you should receive on an industry credit report. These factors are not included in credit reports from the giants like D&B but are definitely in the “must know category” when there are inter-actions between a freight carrier and a freight broker. Does each entity have current operating authority, bonding and insurances needed to cover the value of your customers product?

With the looming recession forecast by many industry experts you should really take extra precaution to make sure the cash flow is maintained. Do your due diligence by maintaining quality credit reports on all
those that do or will owe you money.

Winston Aston, CEO
TransCredit, Inc.