Fleet procurement guide

15 questions fleet managers should ask a driveaway vendor

Last updated: July 26, 2026

Before issuing a purchase order, establish who is legally moving each truck, whether the required authority is granted, which drivers and vehicles the insurer accepts, and how custody will be documented. A low per-mile number cannot cure a missing carrier, an excluded driver, or an uncovered load.

This guide is vendor-neutral educational material, not legal, insurance, or procurement advice. It does not state that SelectDrive is presently authorized, insured, staffed, or available for a particular commercial operation. Verify the final arrangement with transportation counsel, the carrier, and the applicable insurers.

1. Which legal entity is the motor carrier?

Ask for the legal name that undertakes the transportation and will appear on the agreement, movement order, shipping record, insurance documents, invoice, and claim notice. Determine whether the vendor is:

• a motor carrier that accepts responsibility for moving the truck or freight;
• a broker that arranges an independent authorized carrier; or
• a driver staffing or coordination company while your organization remains the motor carrier.

Those are different businesses. If the answer changes between sales, operations, and the contract, stop and reconcile it.

2. What registration and authority apply to this exact move?

A USDOT number and operating authority are not synonyms. A USDOT number identifies an entity and its safety record. Operating authority is a separate registration for applicable for-hire interstate operations. FMCSA describes ordinary regulated freight authority as Motor Carrier of Property, Except Household Goods.

Ask the vendor to identify the authority type, the legal entity that holds it, and its current status. Verify the answer through the current FMCSA status process. "Application pending" is not the same as granted authority. Also confirm any state authority or registration for a wholly intrastate movement.

3. Who controls dispatch and the safety program?

Put names next to the work. Who accepts the move, assigns the driver, sets pickup and delivery requirements, monitors legally available hours, maintains required driver files, handles roadside issues, investigates crashes, and can remove a driver?

In a labor-only model, the fleet customer should actually remain the carrier, not merely lend its USDOT number. FMCSA has warned that a USDOT number or operating authority cannot be rented or leased for another entity's use. Legitimate equipment and driver arrangements remain possible, but the registered carrier must truly perform its responsibilities. See the March 19, 2026 FMCSA bulletin.

4. Is each truck empty or loaded?

Do not use one scope for both. An empty move centers on the customer truck, its condition, and who covers damage while it is driven. A loaded move adds freight, cargo value, bill of lading or shipment records, claims liability, security, and possibly sanitary transportation duties.

Use the commercial truck repositioning guide to document the three branches before requesting a price.

5. What are the exact vehicle and combination ratings?

Give the vendor the power unit and trailer configuration, GVWR, GCWR, expected actual loaded weight, axle count, transmission, brakes, and any special equipment. Ask it to return the license class, endorsements, medical qualification, safety rules, and experience standard it believes apply.

A response based only on "box truck" or "under CDL" is incomplete. The federal CMV safety threshold and the CDL vehicle groups answer different questions, and state license rules can add requirements.

6. How is the assigned driver qualified for this unit?

Ask who verifies and retains evidence for:

• License status, class, endorsements, restrictions, and expiration.
• MVR, relevant vehicle experience, and any customer or insurer screening standard.
• Medical qualification and driver qualification records when applicable.
• CDL drug and alcohol testing and Clearinghouse requirements when applicable.
• Hours-of-service availability, fatigue planning, and any required training.
• Written acceptance of that driver and relationship by the applicable commercial auto insurer.

Background screening can be a customer or insurer control, but it does not replace the vehicle-specific safety qualification. Ask when you will receive the assigned driver's identity and what happens if a substitute is proposed.

7. What does the commercial auto insurance actually cover?

Request a current Certificate of Insurance and the endorsements relevant to the operation. A certificate is a starting document, not the policy. Ask the vendor and its producer to confirm in writing:

• The named insured and policy dates match the contracting carrier and trip.
• The described operation includes driveaway or truck repositioning as actually performed.
• The territory, radius, vehicle class, customer-owned unit, loaded or empty use, and every supplied driver are accepted.
• The applicable liability limits, deductibles, exclusions, cancellation provisions, and claims contact satisfy your agreement.

FMCSA explains that required public-liability filings vary with entity, authority, cargo, and vehicle type, and that authority is not granted until the required proof is on file. See FMCSA insurance filing requirements. A federal filing is not proof that every first-party loss or cargo claim is covered.

8. Which policy covers damage to the customer truck?

Third-party auto liability does not answer who repairs the truck the driver is operating. Ask for the actual policy form or endorsement that covers physical damage to a nonowned customer vehicle in driveaway use. Confirm the maximum unit value, deductible, valuation, collision and comprehensive causes, theft, towing, storage, loss of use, driver dishonesty, and any aggregate.

If a trailer is involved, ask separately about the trailer and any written interchange arrangement. Never assume cargo coverage pays for the power unit itself.

9. If loaded, what covers the freight?

Give the vendor the exact commodity and maximum value on one truck before accepting an insurance answer. Ask about:

• The per-truck and per-occurrence limit, valuation method, deductible, and any coinsurance.
• Commodity exclusions or sublimits for food, apparel, luxury goods, electronics, jewelry, fur, or other target cargo.
• Theft, unattended vehicle, employee or contractor dishonesty, fictitious pickup, voluntary parting, mysterious disappearance, delay, contamination, and misdelivery.
• Whether an excess or shipment-specific layer is required above the underlying cargo policy.

Ordinary non-household-goods cargo insurance is not established merely by the federal public-liability filing. The customer contract and issued cargo policy control.

10. For food, who owns sanitation and temperature duties?

Processed food is not automatically exempt agricultural cargo. The vendor should ask whether the food is fully enclosed, whether temperature control is required for safety or quality, and who is the shipper, loader, carrier, and receiver.

When a covered shipper and carrier assign sanitary responsibilities in writing, FDA rules can require suitable equipment, cleaning, temperature procedures, training, and records. Review the FDA Sanitary Transportation rule overview. Put pre-cooling, set point, monitoring, seal, rejection, hold, and disposition instructions in the shipment packet.

11. For high-value cargo, what is the security schedule?

Ask who verifies the driver, tractor, trailer, and pickup number through a trusted channel. Require a written answer on route confidentiality, approved stops and parking, locks and seals, visible and covert tracking, geofences, unauthorized route changes, lost contact, and escalation.

The FBI cargo theft resource identifies fictitious pickups, account takeovers, double brokering, and fraudulent carriers among current methods. A vendor that asks no value or security questions cannot price or control the exposure responsibly.

12. How are custody, condition, and delivery documented?

Ask for a sample movement packet. It should tie one named driver to one identified unit and record:

• Pickup identity, authority to release, keys, documents, unit condition, odometer, fuel, and existing exceptions.
• Trailer, cargo, bill of lading, seal, and temperature data when applicable.
• Departure, meaningful status events, delays, route deviations, incidents, and handoffs.
• Delivery recipient, condition comparison, seal outcome, exceptions, signature, and proof of delivery.

For multiple trucks, insist on one movement record per unit, grouped under a batch. Do not accept one generic photo set or one status for the entire crew.

13. What does GPS tracking show, and who can see it?

Clarify whether tracking is continuous GPS, periodic pings, milestone updates, or driver texts. Ask what happens when the phone loses power or coverage, who monitors exceptions, and how quickly a missed update escalates.

Also ask when tracking begins and ends, who receives the link, whether links expire, what data customers and the public can see, how long precise history is retained, and how access is logged. More data is not automatically safer if access is uncontrolled.

14. What is the disruption and claims plan?

Ask for the contacts and decision rights for a crash, breakdown, unsafe truck, weather closure, driver illness, missed appointment, cargo discrepancy, temperature alarm, theft concern, law-enforcement stop, or rejected delivery. The plan should say who secures the unit, notifies the customer and insurer, preserves evidence, authorizes repairs or recovery, and assigns a replacement driver.

Request the claim notice address, deadlines, required documents, deductible allocation, and cooperation process before the first dispatch.

15. What is included in the price and cancellation rule?

Ask for a written price that separates the movement from driver positioning, return travel, fuel, tolls, permits, parking, lodging, waiting, equipment, tracking, special cargo controls, and approved expenses. Define:

• What fact changes permit repricing and who must approve them.
• When waiting starts, how it is measured, and any daily cap.
• What happens when the truck is unsafe, not ready, misdescribed, or released late.
• Cancellation windows, nonrecoverable travel, failed pickup, replacement, and force-majeure treatment.
• When the price is earned and which proof closes the movement.

Red flags that should stop award

• "Our authority is pending, but we can start."
• "Our USDOT number proves we can do any truck move."
• "We will run under your number" when the vendor actually controls the transportation.
• "We are fully insured" with no current documents or operation-specific confirmation.
• "Every licensed driver can drive every truck."
• A loaded-move quote issued without commodity, value, temperature, or security questions.
• No named carrier, no one-unit movement record, or no written incident and claims procedure.
• A substitute-driver right with no qualification or insurer approval gate.

Send the same RFP packet to every vendor

Comparisons improve when each vendor receives the same facts. Include the legal customer entity, carrier model under consideration, unit list, ratings, loaded or empty status, commodity and maximum value, routes, dates, weekly volume, appointment rules, customer insurance requirements, driver credentials, screening standards, tracking needs, custody evidence, payment terms, and a sample contract.

Ask each vendor to identify assumptions and exceptions. A lower quote based on a different truck, cargo, or responsibility allocation is not a lower price for the same service.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most important question to ask a driveaway vendor?

Ask which legal entity is the motor carrier for the movement. That answer should match the agreement, shipping or movement record, dispatch process, authority, insurance, safety records, and claims procedure.

Is a USDOT number proof that a driveaway vendor has operating authority?

No. A USDOT number identifies an entity for safety and registration purposes, while operating authority is a separate registration for applicable for-hire interstate operations. Verify the current authority type and status through the official FMCSA tools.

What insurance documents should a fleet manager request?

Request current certificates and relevant endorsements, then ask the producer or insurer to confirm the named insured, policy dates, actual operation, vehicles, drivers, territory, liability, damage to customer equipment, cargo, deductibles, exclusions, cancellation notice, and claims contact.

What should a fleet manager ask about driver screening?

Ask who verifies license class, endorsements, restrictions, expiration, MVR, relevant experience, and insurer acceptance. For regulated CMV or CDL work, also ask who owns the driver qualification, medical, drug and alcohol, Clearinghouse, hours-of-service, and training responsibilities.

What is a driveaway vendor red flag?

Red flags include treating pending authority as active, saying a USDOT number proves all authority, offering only a generic fully insured statement, failing to name the carrier, putting an unapproved driver in a truck, or quoting loaded cargo without asking its commodity and maximum value.

Continue your fleet planning

Next, compare driver staffing and direct hiring, or return to the commercial truck movement guide to build the unit-level request.