Start with a reported contact
Compare the phone number and address on a carrier packet with the carrier’s reported census contact. The workspace finds other public records that share the same normalized business phone number or exact normalized physical address. Open each matching record to check its USDOT number and company details instead of comparing contact details by hand.
See earlier names, phones and addresses
A carrier record lists former legal names, phone numbers and physical addresses observed in CarrierTrail’s dated history, plus a short list of similarly named companies with a similarity score. A recent contact change is a good moment to call the carrier on a number you found independently.
Check each company separately
Compare each USDOT identity, legal name, DBA and available source dates. Include the matching phone number or address in your note. Verify the explanation using your team’s usual checks.
Keep your team’s notes private
Record the explanation your team obtained and the questions that remain, then save a decision based on the evidence for this carrier. Notes and decisions stay private to your workspace.
Example: a phone number that doesn’t match the packet
A carrier packet lists a mobile number, while the carrier’s census record reports a different business phone. In CarrierTrail your team can see:
- whether the packet’s number or the reported number appears on other USDOT records,
- whether the reported phone, address or legal name changed recently in CarrierTrail’s history, and
- companies with similar legal names that could be confused with this one.
The next step is to call the carrier on a number you found independently, record who confirmed what, and save the carrier as Needs review until the question is resolved.
What the contact checks include
- Shared contacts: other public records with the same normalized business phone number or the same exact normalized physical address.
- Contact history: up to the 30 most recent changes to the legal name, business phone and physical address that CarrierTrail saw, each with its date.
- Similar names: up to 10 companies whose legal names closely resemble this one, each with a similarity score.
Questions brokers ask
Does a shared phone number mean double brokering?
On its own, no. Dispatch services, shared offices, agents and related companies often share a phone number or address. The shared-contact list shows each record so your team can see which applies and what to ask the carrier.
Where does the phone number come from?
From the business phone the carrier reported in its FMCSA census record.
How far back does contact history go?
To when CarrierTrail first observed the carrier, with up to the 30 most recent changes and the date of each.
Who sees my team’s notes about a carrier?
Only members of your workspace.