Recent developments illustrate a number of existing and developing theories of law whereby a shipper may be held liable for damages caused by a carrier it selects to transport its freight. Because a property broker may in many situations have similar factual attributes to that of an actual shipper (e.g., control of carrier selection, pick-up and delivery time specifications, cargo loading and securement specifications, etc.), a property broker should be conscious of these developing theories of liability and implement processes and procedures to safeguard against a finding of negligence on its part with respect to any given movement of cargo.
Possible safeguards include (i) separation of property brokerage operations in an entity separate from any motor carrier or other transportation operations; (ii)development of responsible carrier selection guidelines to govern and document the broker’s carrier qualification procedures; and (iii) clear delineation within contracts between both the broker and the shipper, and the broker and the carrier of responsibilities of the aspects of a cargo move and the insurance and indemnification responsibilities of the parties.
Possible safeguards include (i) separation of property brokerage operations in an entity separate from any motor carrier or other transportation operations; (ii)development of responsible carrier selection guidelines to govern and document the broker’s carrier qualification procedures; and (iii) clear delineation within contracts between both the broker and the shipper, and the broker and the carrier of responsibilities of the aspects of a cargo move and the insurance and indemnification responsibilities of the parties.
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