Carrier vetting · Onboarding · Monitoring
Carrier vetting software that checks the carrier, not just the record.
A clean federal record tells you a company exists. It doesn’t tell you who answered your email. Type one MC number and Happy Tactic works through the owner, the insurer, the dispatcher and the driver, then gives you a verdict with the evidence behind it.
Buying guide
What to look for in carrier vetting software
Most tools can tell you whether an authority is active and an insurance filing exists. That was a reasonable bar when fraud meant a carrier with a bad record. It isn’t enough now that the common play is borrowing a good one. These are the questions worth asking any vendor, including us.
Does it verify identity or just look up records?
Ask how it confirms the person you’re dealing with is really the carrier. If the answer is an email link or a login anyone can create, a stolen identity passes.
Can it see change over time?
A phone, email and insurer that all changed last month is the pattern that matters. A snapshot of today can’t show it.
Where does the insurance data come from?
A certificate that passed through the carrier’s hands can be edited. Ask whether the data comes from the source, and whether it covers the driver and truck on your load.
Does it check the driver and truck?
Most fraud reaches your freight through a person at the dock. Vetting that stops at the company leaves that person unchecked.
What happens after approval?
Look for monitoring and an expiry date. A carrier approved in March can lose coverage in April.
Does your TMS actually enforce it?
A verdict in another system is only a suggestion. If a rep can tender to a failed carrier anyway, your vetting depends on everyone remembering to check.
The pipeline
Thirteen enforced steps. Your part is the first one.
Every step is enforced by the server, so nobody can skip the owner call on a busy Friday. The carrier’s side runs on secure links, with no account for them to create.
Lookup and history
Enter an MC or DOT number. We pull the federal record and the carrier’s change history, so you see its story instead of a snapshot.
Owner confirmation
A recorded interview on the number of public record, with answers checked against the record. Then a one-time code and an e-signed dispatcher authorization.
Old-number checks
We call and text numbers recently removed from the carrier’s record. A “this is fraud” reply fails the verification.
Insurance from the source
Policy data, dates, named drivers and VINs come direct from the insurance source. A named-insured mismatch is an automatic fail.
Driver identity
Camera-only captures of the license and VIN, a state-record check and a facial match. Photos are checked for reuse and tampering.
Cross-checks and verdict
34 automated cross-checks and a 13-dimension score from 0 to 100, higher is safer. You get green, yellow or red, plus an Evidence Packet PDF.
The difference
Point-in-time vetting vs. a live status
| Question | Point-in-time vetting | Happy Tactic |
|---|---|---|
| What you see | The record as it is today | The record and how it changed |
| Who gets verified | The company | The owner, dispatcher, driver and truck |
| Insurance | Filings and a forwarded certificate | Filings, plus policy data from the source |
| After approval | Re-check when you remember | Monitored, with alerts and an expiry date |
| Enforcement | A note in another system | Built into the TMS: expired carriers can’t take tenders |
Questions brokers ask
Straight answers.
What is carrier vetting software?
Software that helps freight brokers and 3PLs decide whether a motor carrier is who it says it is and is fit to haul a load. It typically checks federal authority, safety data and insurance. Stronger tools also verify identity, follow changes over time, and monitor the carrier after approval.
How do you vet a carrier?
Confirm active authority and safety data on the federal record, review how that record has changed, reach the owner on the phone number of record, get insurance from the source rather than a forwarded certificate, confirm who may dispatch for the carrier, identify the driver and truck, and keep the evidence.
How long does carrier verification take?
Your part is typing an MC or DOT number. The rest depends on how quickly the owner, dispatcher and driver respond, so it is minutes rather than days when everyone does their part. By hand, the same work commonly takes far longer.
Do carriers need an account or an app?
No. Owners, dispatchers and drivers each get a secure link by text or email. They never create a Happy Tactic account or password, which keeps honest carriers moving.
What does it cost?
Verification is on every plan. Hotshot is $150 a month plus $23 per verification. Regional is $299 a month with 15 verifications and the full TMS, Linehaul is $499 with 30, and Fleet is $750 with 50. Enterprise is custom.
Is a phone call enough to approve a carrier?
No, and it shouldn’t be. Someone who hijacked a carrier’s record may also control its registered phone. A perfect interview on its own is capped well below the approval threshold. Approval takes evidence from independent sources.
Run your next carrier through it.
Verification is on every plan. Bring the next MC number you weren’t sure about.