The Columbia Fresh Difference

5 reasons why shippers choose CFTS over other 3PLs

 

Reason #1

We only arrange refrigerated freight.

When you specialize in one thing you become the best at it. You wouldn’t trust your family doctor to perform heart surgery on you, so why would you hire a freight brokerage that doesn’t specialize in refrigerated freight to handle your company’s shipments?  At CFTS, we have spent the last 10 years qualifying the best refrigerated carriers in the industry.  We have over three thousand refrigerated carriers throughout the US & Canada to choose from. Because of this we can offer services that no other reefer specific brokerage can offer including drop trailer programs, refrigerated cross dock storage, and refrigerated intermodal movements.

 

 

Reason #2

All Insurance isn’t created equal.

There are three main insurance products every broker should have. The reality is most do not. Let’s look at what they are and what they cover.

 

REEFER BREAKDOWN

Reefer Breakdown coverage is cargo insurance that is activated in the event the carrier’s insurance lapses while transporting your goods. The problem is not what these insurances cover, the problem is in what they do not cover. Next time you talk to your broker ask them to provide you a copy of the exclusions in their reefer breakdown coverage.  You’ll be shocked to find that almost every possible scenario for having a claim has been excluded. If the carrier sets the reefer to the wrong temp – excluded. If the reefer unit runs out of fuel while in transit – excluded. The list of exclusions goes on and on. This lack of insurance puts you at risk. Because we only handle refrigerated freight we have partnered with our insurance provider to have these exclusions removed from our coverage. The result: we have the best reefer breakdown coverage in the industry.

 

VICARIOUS AUTO LIABILITY

If you are not certain that your current broker has vicarious auto liability stop reading this and call them now.  Vicarious Auto insures the broker in the case where a truck they hire is involved in an accident resulting in injury or death.  If a broker is named in the lawsuit, as in recent negligent hiring cases, the insurer will be in a position to defend them.  If the broker is found liable, vicarious auto liability will provide coverage.  How does this affect you?  If a broker is either named or found guilty in a negligent hiring case the claims could be for an enormous sum of money.  If this occurs and the brokerage does not have the means to pay the verdict, they will most likely go out of business, leaving the carriers they hired in the cold.  These carriers would then turn to the shipper to be compensated, leaving you vulnerable.  If your current brokerage does not have this coverage in place you are putting your business at risk.  At CFTS, we have one million dollars in Vicarious Auto Liability Coverage to protect ourselves and our customers in the unlikely event of a claim.

 

ERRORS & OMISSIONS

Some claims are not covered under any other policy. For example, if your broker accidentally gives the wrong information to the carrier by mistake, the broker could be considered negligent. That type of claim can be covered by Errors & Omissions insurance.  If your current broker does not have this coverage watch out. For example, you ask your brokerage to ship a load from Los Angeles CA to Salem OR, but instead the brokerage contracts the carrier to ship the load from Los Angeles CA to Salem NJ.  Or instead of setting the reefer to 38 degrees the brokerage contracts the carrier to set the temp to 83 degrees. Unless you think your brokerage is infallible, you need to make sure they have this insurance to protect you in the event they are not.

 

 

Reason #3

Carrier Contracts

I have seen carrier contracts as short as 1 page and as long as ours (6 pages).  You can tell a lot about the quality of your broker by reviewing their carrier contract. That’s why at CFTS we go over our carrier contract with all of our customers to show them that all brokers' carrier contracts are not created equal. Does your brokers' contract have a clause that indemnifies you against any and all future claims made by carriers? Ours does. Does your broker’s contract have specific language in place regarding the carrier’s maintenance of their reefer units? Ours does. If your broker hasn’t already given you the answers to these questions they most likely don’t have coverage. Give us a call, and we will be happy to go over what we offer and what you should expect from your other transportation providers.

 

Reason #4

Our Brokers

When you book a load with CFTS your broker does everything from carrier selection, setting up pickup and delivery appointments, daily check calls with the driver, and everything else in between. This is not the case at the big brokerages. Other brokerages have customer/sales reps, appointment setters, and truck finders. The problem with that is each person involved with your load is motivated differently. Has your customer rep ever called you and said the truck scheduled to pick up your load broke down or had problems getting unloaded and couldn’t pick up your loads. This is because the truck finder only had a few trucks available in that lane and had to use what trucks they had to service the brokerage's largest customers first. That will never happen at CFTS. At CFTS your broker's only concern is your load and your load only.

 

Reason #5

No Agents

Have you ever asked your broker rep if they are an agent? Most brokerages hire agents or independent contractors to cut costs. Not us. Why is that important to you? Independent contractors are responsible for maintaining their own office, phones, computers, payroll expense, etc.  Because of this they need to make a certain amount of money every month just to break even. Imagine this, an agent at a brokerage is having a slow month and having trouble paying the bills.  They need to cover a load and have the choice between two carriers. One expensive carrier with a spotless record and another poorly rated carrier willing to haul the load for cheap.  Who do you think they will pick? That’s why at CFTS you will never speak to an independent contractor/agent. You only be working with employees that have your best interests in mind.