Freight brokers · Carrier onboarding
Carrier onboarding in Canada: what brokers collect and chase
The load is ready. The carrier's insurance certificate is not, and nobody has seen the CVOR record.
Carrier onboarding in Canada is a document chase, and the decision stays yours:
- The packet requested on day one: agreement, insurance, safety record, workers' compensation, banking
- Missing items chased on a schedule and filed to the carrier
- Every expiry date listed, with the renewal request drafted 30 days ahead
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What should a Canadian broker collect from a carrier?
Canadian carriers do not hold operating authority the way US carriers do. The key item is the provincial safety fitness certificate and the carrier's safety record.
| Document | What to collect | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier agreement | Signed by an officer of the carrier | Your template, sent by you |
| Insurance certificate | Current, with your company named where your agreement requires it | The carrier's insurance agent; confirm it with the agent directly |
| Safety fitness certificate | CVOR in Ontario, NIR in Quebec, an NSC certificate in other provinces | The carrier; in Ontario the safety rating can be looked up free |
| CVOR record | The Level 1 summary and the Level 2 long form, with five years of detail | Only the carrier or its agent can order the Level 2; it is mailed about 15 days after ordering |
| Workers' compensation | Proof of coverage, such as a WSIB clearance certificate in Ontario | The carrier |
| US operating authority | Only for loads into the US: USDOT and MC numbers | The carrier; check the US public record |
| Banking and tax | A void cheque or bank letter, and the GST/HST number | The carrier; any later change confirmed by phone |
From CIFFA, Doing Business as a Freight Broker in Canada (2021), and an Ontario broker's carrier vetting guide (TRAFFIX, 2026).
Why does onboarding never end?
| Figure | What it measures | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| 22% | of TIA members surveyed lost more than $200,000 to fraud in six months | TIA, April 2025 |
| About 1,601 | thefts of trucks, trailers and cargo in Ontario in 2025 | Équité, via Truck News, February 2026 |
| No licence | needed to be a freight broker in Canada, outside Ontario's trust rule and Quebec registration | CIFFA, 2021 |
A packet can look complete and still come from someone pretending to be the carrier. CIFFA's guidance: confirm insurance with the insurance agent, and reach the carrier on a number you found yourself.
How does the chase work?
- You add the carrier. Name, contact and the loads you plan to give them.
- The packet request goes out. Your agreement and the list above, in one email from your own address, on day one. The CVOR Level 2 is asked for first, because it takes about 15 days.
- Missing items are chased. On day 2, 4 and 6, naming exactly what is still missing.
- Each document is filed. To the carrier's folder, with its expiry date read and the company names compared with the agreement.
- Insurance is confirmed with the agent. A confirmation request drafted to the carrier's insurance agent, for a person to send to an address you looked up.
- You decide. The carrier's file shows complete, or exactly what is missing. Approving or rejecting stays with you.
What gets flagged for a person?
A request to change banking details. Held for a person to confirm by phone, on a number you already had.
Names that do not match. The company name on the insurance certificate, the agreement and the safety certificate compared.
A certificate about to expire. Listed 30 days ahead, with the renewal request drafted.
A new email address for a carrier you know. Flagged so a person checks before anyone replies.
These are flags for a person. They do not detect fraud, and they do not approve anyone.
What does the carrier list show?
Carrier files · sample
Every carrier, what each one is still missing, and what expires next, on one list. When a load is ready, you can see in a second which carriers are fully set up.
Which of these happen in your office?
Tick the ones that are yours. They go with your request.
Carrier setup
You ticked 0 of 6.
Send these with a free discovery requestWhat it will not do
It will not vet a carrier, approve or reject one, check a carrier against fraud lists, or promise that a carrier is real. It will not order a CVOR record for the carrier or contact an insurance agent on its own; a person sends those requests. The decision about who hauls your freight stays with you.
Questions about carrier onboarding
- What is carrier onboarding?
- Collecting and checking a carrier's documents before you give it a load: the agreement, insurance, safety record, workers' compensation and banking. In Canada the key item is the provincial safety fitness certificate.
- Do Canadian carriers need operating authority?
- Not for domestic loads. Canadian carriers hold a provincial safety fitness certificate instead: CVOR in Ontario, NIR in Quebec, an NSC certificate elsewhere. Loads into the US need US authority.
- Can a broker order a carrier's CVOR Level 2?
- No. Only the carrier or its agent can order the Level 2 long form. The Level 1 summary is public, and in Ontario the safety rating can be looked up free.
- How long does a CVOR Level 2 take?
- It is mailed about 15 days after it is ordered, so it is asked for on day one.
- Should I trust the insurance certificate the carrier sends?
- Confirm it with the insurance agent, using contact details you found yourself. CIFFA's guidance is not to rely only on insurance documents from the carrier.
- Does a freight broker need a licence in Canada?
- Not as such. Outside Ontario's rule that freight money is held in trust and Quebec's registration of intermediaries, freight brokers are not licensed (CIFFA, 2021).
- Does this stop double brokering?
- No. It keeps the paperwork complete and flags banking changes and new email addresses for a person to check. Your vetting and judgement stay in charge.
- How do carriers send the documents?
- By replying to the request email, or by photo on WhatsApp if you allow it. Each one is filed to the carrier.
- Does it work with my TMS?
- It works from your inbox. Where your TMS has an export or a connection, the carrier list can be written back; discovery confirms which.
- What does it cost?
- Discovery is free. The build is quoted after it, then a monthly care plan. We do not publish a rate card.
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