intermodal trucking companies.

when $750,000 applies

For-hire property carriers in interstate or foreign commerce operating vehicles of 10,001 lbs or more GVWR/GCWR, not transporting the hazardous materials listed in 49 CFR 387.9.

FMCSA cargo-carried codes used as hints

• code 12 — Intermodal containers

Interchange and chassis

UIIA, railroad interchange, and chassis-pool rules control who can pull the box. Check them separately from MC authority.

highway, rail, and ocean are different contracts

Census cargo class 12 (intermodal containers) is the FMCSA hint for containerized freight. The QCMobile snapshot describes the motor carrier. It does not describe a rail contract, a steamship line, or a chassis pool.

The motor-carrier check still applies to the highway portion: legal name, authority matching interstate vs intrastate, BI&PD on L&I, cargo for the box. Then stack interchange, chassis, and last-free-day the same way you would on a drayage hub.

Cargo class 12 is shared by drayage and long-haul container movers. Confirm which motor carrier pulls this box, then interchange.

who is the motor carrier on the highway leg

Asset railroads and ocean carriers are not a substitute for the trucker who pulls the gate. If you are booking the highway move, the rate con names a motor carrier with Active authority. A 3PL brand that only holds broker authority is not that carrier.

Door-to-door quotes often hide the dray. Ask which MC pulls origin and which MC pulls destination. Verify both if they are different. A chameleon pattern is a new MC at one ramp and a familiar brand on the invoice.

Street turns across two brokers without interchange control are how boxes get lost. The entity on UIIA owns the equipment responsibility. Write that entity down.

chassis, overweight, and out-of-gauge

Chassis-pool rules and per-diem sit outside FMCSA. Put provider and free time on the rate confirmation. Overweight and OOG need the right chassis and permits. Interstate authority does not include them.

A long-haul van with no interchange cannot “just take it to the customer” from a ramp. If they have never pulled that ramp, they are not intermodal coverage for this box.

Cargo should contemplate the container contents. High-value retail in a 40′ is not general freight for insurance purposes even when the census says general freight plus intermodal containers.

bond, SCAC, and who files the ISF story

Customs bonds, ISF, and ocean documentation are not motor-carrier census fields. If your customer asked the trucker to “handle customs,” stop and name the licensed party. An MC with Active property authority is not a customs broker.

SCAC codes help match a rail or ocean event to a trucker. They still have to join to the legal name on L&I. A SCAC on a tracking email with a different MC on the rate con is two entities.

Peak-season ramps miss boxes. A carrier who cannot tell you where the container is in the terminal inventory is not covering a last-free-day pickup. Get the location event, then the appointment, then the MC check — in that order if the clock is the risk.

desk verification sequence

Intermodal bookings fail when the highway leg is verified last. Start with the motor carrier that will pull the box: legal name, USDOT, MC, Active property authority on L&I, required BMC filing, BOC-3 on file. Then stack interchange, chassis, and last-free-day.

If origin and destination use different motor carriers, run the sequence twice. A clean docket at the port does not cover the inland dray at the warehouse. Write both MCs on the rate confirmation.

Census cargo class 12 confirms the carrier told FMCSA they haul intermodal containers. It does not confirm UIIA membership, rail interchange, or chassis-pool access. Those are separate yes/no questions before you cover.

• Identify the highway MC(s) on the rate con — not the 3PL brand alone.
• Confirm Active property authority and BMC filing on L&I for each MC.
• Verify UIIA / interchange for the railroad or ocean line at this ramp.
• Confirm chassis source, per-diem, and last free day in writing.
• Match cargo limits to container contents, named to the highway MC.
• Callback to census telephone before first-time MC at a peak ramp.

intermodal versus drayage hubs

Short port or ramp moves are drayage problems: gate access, chassis pools, and per-diem dominate. Long-haul container repositioning is a highway problem with a box attached. This hub covers both because census class 12 appears on both — your questions differ by lane.

If the load never leaves the port metro, read the drayage hub for chassis and interchange detail. If the box crosses multiple states after rail unload, confirm interstate authority explicitly. Intrastate-only dockets do not cover a cross-border reposition.

Use DOT or MC lookup on the specific motor carrier named for the pull. A door-to-door quote from a broker-only docket is not a verified highway carrier until you name the trucker’s MC.

common broker search terms

Brokers search for intermodal trucking companies, container drayage carriers, and rail ramp motor carriers when vetting a new lane. The FMCSA record is always tied to a legal name and USDOT — not to a steamship line or rail event code.

Verifreta lookup tools return census identity and dockets for the motor carrier on your rate confirmation. Pair that with the desk checklist on this page for interchange, chassis, and cargo limits before you book intermodal freight.

equipment and desk questions

• Which MC pulls origin ramp/port, and which MC pulls destination, if they differ?
• Interchange / UIIA current for this railroad or ocean line?
• Chassis source, last free day, empty return?
• Overweight or OOG, and is the chassis legal for that gross?
• Interstate authority if the box crosses a state line?
• Cargo limit versus contents, named to the highway MC?

door quote, broker docket, unnamed drayage truck

You do not have a motor carrier yet. Get the MC that will pull, verify it, then cover. The door-to-door PDF is a price, not an identity.

ramp pull, van MC, no UIIA

Same stop as drayage without interchange. Do not send them to the gate. Use a carrier already on interchange for that ramp.

desk checklist

• Authority covers the highway portion of the move.
• Interchange status for the ramp or port in question.
• Who provides chassis, and who pays per-diem, written on the rate con.

common mistakes

• Using a highway van carrier’s record as proof they can pull international boxes.
• Ignoring last-free-day when you book the dray.