Selecting a Transporter

As a horse owner you know it’s a major undertaking to select a Transporter who you can trust. Unfortunately, there isn’t any easy answer or method which would enable you to feel comfortable and secure in your decision.

The horse industry is full of well meaning people who decided that since they have a trailer they can be a hauler. Most of these haven’t a clue as to the licensing and insurance requirements, let alone how to safely transport a horse. These companies usually do not have their own web sites or physical addresses, and are not incorporated. By this we mean if the company has a Home Page on AOL or other Internet Provider and not on a web site bearing their name with a .com they could be smaller than you think. Incorporation or Sole Proprietor are two standard forms of business operations, both having the availability of a company name licensed in the state or county of the business. In either case they will have a Bank Account in the Company Name and will be able to accept payments in that name. Haulers requesting CASH or Certified Funds payable directly to themselves most probably are not recognized legal businesses. We suggest that you be extremely careful when sending Cash or Certified Funds to this type of entity, horsemen have been ripped off doing this. Unfortunately there are individuals who will take your money and never show up.

There are a number of web sites offering to accept your trip request and to forward it to all of the transporters associated with them. These sites provide you with the vehicle to get your trip to a lot of haulers and to receive bids from them. Unfortunately, none of the haulers listed on these sites are certified by the site. No licensing or insurance is checked or any references. Therefore, it’s still up to you to check the hauler out, not doing so could spell disaster.

It has been our experience that you get what you pay for. This is not to say you shouldn’t negotiate for the best possible quote, but realize if it sounds too good it probably is. For example diesel is now $ 3.15 per gallon, so if the truck was to get 10 mpg your raw cost to move the truck is $ .32 per mile, plus insurance, plus payroll, plus tolls, plus licensing giving an approximate cost per mile of over $ 1.00.

With this in mind if a transporter offers to pick your horse up for $ .45 per mile, operating a 3 horse trailer cannot be making money and probably not licensed. Those unlicensed transporters, if stopped, can be put out of service by the authorities, their horses sent to impound and you would never know until the authority contacted you about your horse. Impound fees could be as high as $ 150.00 per day with you now faced with finding a hauler to get the horse as well a additional costs. The old adage of an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure really applies.

Required Licensing

When you question a transporter about whether or not they have valid authority, and licenses you are going to be told many lies by those unlicensed. Licensed and insured transporters will gladly provide you with any information you request.

One of the biggest lies is that a transporter is too small to require a DOT number. The Federal Department of Transportation regulations stipulate that anyone crossing the state lines to make money must have a DOT number and conform to the rules therein. Many mom and pop haulers simply tell you that they don’t require one since they operate a vehicle less than 26,001 lbs. This fact only applies to a CDL which we will address later.

So if they cannot provide the DOT number they aren’t licensed to cross state lines with your horse. If they are stopped the horse will be impounded and they will be put out of service, not to mention a large fine assessed.

Additional authority is a MC number, Federal Motor Carrier number, required for any hauler of horses where the horse is other than a pleasure horse. Ie: Race Horse, Show Horse etc. The DOT number mandates that they carry a minimum of $ 750,000.00 liability insurance. A MC number indicates they are licensed to carry non exempt cargo as listed in Rule 119 of the FMCSA, and in doing so must produce proof of Cargo Insurance. It's up to you to get proof of insurance.

As a horse owner you should consider purchasing Trip Insurance from an Equine Insurance Agency for Death and Dismemberment. The value of your horse to you is that of the purchase price and any training or awards they have received. To determine actual value you would need an Equine Appraiser to certify the value for you to receive it. In the case of Trip Insurance you can purchase whatever you want similar to Flight Insurance for yourself. 

To verify their status as well as safety record you can go to www.safersys.org, scroll down and select Company Profile, enter their DOT number or Company Name and verify the licensing. You will also be shown any violations they may have against them.

Legitimate companies will list their license numbers on their sites as well as on any providers site. Some unlicensed ones will list their Drivers License Number or Tag number neither of which means anything. Remember only you can protect your horse if you put him on an unlicensed rig.   What ever happens will be on you.

Commercial Drivers License

Federal Law defines the need for a Class A CDL as follows: If the weight or combined weight of the truck and trailer exceed 26,001 lbs provided  the trailer GVWR exceeds 10,000 lbs. If the trailer is less than 10,000 lbs then a Class B is required. Realize that any horse trailer exceeding a 4 horse will most probably have a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating over the 10,000 lb limit. Should the combination be less than 26001 lbs no CDL is required.

 Federal Law listed on FMCSA Web Site

Class A -- Any combination of vehicles with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds provided the GVWR of the vehicle(s) being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.

If the transporter isn’t licensed to drive the vehicle they could be made to leave the trailer in impound until a licensed driver can come get it. Again leaving you and your horse out to dry.

State Licensing Requirements

Each state has the right to impose additional requirements of the movement of livestock as well as licensing for haulers. For example the State of Florida requires each truck of a commercial hauler to be registered with the Department of Agriculture and to display a tag on the rear issued by the state. If you reside in Florida or are shipping into or out of Florida be sure that the transporter is duly licensed by the D.O.A.

The hauler should be aware of all licenses, but some are truly obscure and require diligent research to find the requirement. None the less ignorance of the law does not excuse you.

Each states requirements can be found by calling their Department of Agriculture, so if you wish please call them and get the straight answers.

Some states require permits issued by the state to bring a horse in or to move it within the state. Rhode Island requires state issued permits to bring horses in for final residence. New York requires a permit to move a stud within the state.

The state offices are listed on this site as State Health Requirements go there to find the numbers and check out the actual requirements.

Summary

  To summarize, you the horse owner need to take your time and check out any transporter before you entrust your horse to their care. Be very sure that you get the following information: Federal DOT Number, MC Number (if applicable), State License if required, and at least 5 references to call, then call them and check the DOT numbers using the information above. 

Once you have all of these, follow up and check them out, call the references, do everything you can to be comfortable with the hauler. Once completed, negotiate the contract, book the trip.