New MC authority
Truck dispatch services for new authority carriers
The first ninety days decide more than most carriers expect. Broker setups, insurance, the New Entrant audit and cash flow all land at once — while you are trying to keep the truck moving.
- No setup fee, ever
- Broker setups run in parallel
- Nothing owed for a week you do not run
The short answer
Can a new authority carrier use a dispatch service?
Yes, for any rig longer than 26 ft, and the first months are when it helps most. MSM Transit runs broker setups in parallel with load search, so paperwork is not the reason the truck sits. Expect friction: many brokers will not set up authority under six months old, which is normal and does pass.
What the first 90 days look like Do I need MC authority? Talk to a dispatcher
Who we dispatch: Dry Van, Reefer, Flatbed, Step Deck, Conestoga, Power Only, Hotshot, Box Truck, RGN / Lowboy and Heavy Haul — every rig longer than 26 ft, new authorities included. Not a fit: sprinter vans, cargo vans and 16 ft box trucks.
What actually goes wrong
New carriers rarely fail on driving. They fail on cash and setups.
These are the four things that put new authority carriers back off the road, in the order they usually happen.
- Broker setups take longer than expected. Every new customer is a packet, and many brokers gate on authority age.
- Cash runs out before the first invoices pay. Thirty-day terms and a truck payment do not line up.
- Bad freight accepted out of impatience. An empty truck makes a cheap load look reasonable. It is not.
- The New Entrant audit arrives unprepared for. The files it asks for have to have existed all along.
What we do about each
- Setups run in parallel with load search. One packet built once and reused for every broker.
- Factoring submissions handled, and the contract read with you before you sign it.
- A written minimum rate per mile agreed on day one, so "anything is better than sitting" never becomes the strategy.
- Driver qualification files and HOS records kept current from load one — which is the audit preparation.
- No setup fee and no minimum, because month one is the worst possible time to be billed for nothing.
We are not a compliance consultancy or a law firm. Verify current FMCSA requirements directly with FMCSA.
Start here
The services that matter in the first ninety days
Truck Dispatch
Loads found and negotiated, setups completed, paperwork handled — so the truck moves while the admin catches up.
How it worksFactoring Assistance
Submissions prepared, notices of assignment handled, and the contract read with you before you sign the wrong one.
How it worksSafety & Compliance
DQ files, HOS records and the maintenance file kept current from load one — which is what the New Entrant audit asks to see.
How it worksWorth reading first: Do I need MC authority to use a dispatch service? · How much do truck dispatchers charge? · Is a dispatch service worth it for one truck?
Questions
New authority — straight answers
Can you dispatch me the day my authority is active?
We can start work immediately, but be realistic about the first few weeks: broker setups take time, and a proportion of brokers will not set up a carrier whose authority is under six months old. We work the ones who will while the clock runs on the ones who will not.
Why do brokers refuse new authority?
Risk. A new carrier has no safety history, no payment history and no track record of delivering. Many brokers set a minimum authority age — six months is common — and some tie it to insurance requirements. It is not personal and it does pass.
What do I need before you can book anything?
Active MC and USDOT authority, a certificate of insurance meeting standard broker requirements, a W-9, a notice of assignment if you factor, and a signed dispatch agreement. If you are mid-application we will walk you through the sequence, but we cannot book freight until the authority is active.
Should I factor as a new carrier?
Often yes, at least initially. New carriers are financing the broker’s payment terms out of their own pocket at exactly the point they have least cash. Read the contract first though — recourse windows, reserve holdbacks and minimum volume penalties are where the real cost lives.
What is the New Entrant Safety Audit?
FMCSA audits new carriers within their first period of operation to confirm the required safety management systems exist — driver qualification files, hours-of-service records, drug and alcohol programme, maintenance records. It is passable and it is preparable. Check current requirements directly with FMCSA.
Do you charge a setup fee for new carriers?
No. No setup fee, no onboarding fee, no monthly minimum. You pay a percentage of gross on loads we book, and nothing in a week the truck does not run — which matters more in month one than it ever will again.
Free dispatch audit
Just got your authority?
Call the desk. We will tell you honestly what the next ninety days look like — including the parts nobody enjoys.
- Reply within 1 business hour
- First load usually booked in 24 hours
- Cancel with 15 days notice, any time