49 CFR 371.3 requires every property broker to keep records of each shipment and make them available to a carrier on request. OverTheRoad.AI handles the request, on your letterhead.
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49 CFR 371.3 at a glance
| Citation | 49 CFR § 371.3 — Records to be kept by brokers |
|---|---|
| Authority | Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), under the Department of Transportation |
| Who it applies to | Property brokers operating under FMCSA authority (not freight forwarders, not carriers acting as brokers under a co-brokerage) |
| What records are required | For each shipment: shipper name, carrier name, bill of lading or freight bill number, amount of compensation received from the shipper, amount paid to the carrier, broker compensation, and a description of the services performed |
| Retention period | Records must be kept for at least 3 years from the date of the transaction |
| Right to inspect | Each party to a brokered transaction has the right to review the record of that transaction on request |
| Current status | Existing rule in effect since 1980. NPRM published November 20, 2024; public comment closed January 21, 2025 |
| Common contract waivers | Many broker-carrier contracts include language by which the carrier waives 371.3 inspection rights. Enforceability of such waivers is a live legal question |
Illustrative load — Acme Logistics, Chicago to Atlanta
Numbers like this are derivable from the broker's 49 CFR 371.3 transaction record. Sample load — fictional names, real format.
49 CFR 371.3 has two operative paragraphs. Here's the substance, paraphrased for readability — see the authoritative text on Cornell LII for verbatim language.
371.3(a) — Records required
A property broker must keep, for each transaction, a record identifying the shipper and the carrier; the consignee; the bill of lading or freight bill number; the amount of compensation received by the broker for the brokerage service and the name of the payer; a description of the services performed; the amount of any freight charges collected by the broker; and the date of payment to the carrier.
371.3(c) — Right to inspect
Each party to a brokered transaction has the right to review the record of the transaction. (In plain English: if you're the carrier on a load, you can ask the broker to see their 371.3(a) record for that load.)
What 371.3 doesn't say
The current rule does NOT specify a deadline by which the broker must produce records, does NOT require electronic recordkeeping, and does NOT explicitly bar contractual waivers. All three of those gaps are exactly what the FMCSA's November 2024 NPRM was filed to address.
In November 2024, the FMCSA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on broker transparency, responding to a multi-year petition campaign from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) and the Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC). The proposed amendments would substantially strengthen 371.3.
Proposal 1
Brokers would be required to keep their 371.3 transaction records in electronic format. The current rule allows paper records, which makes ad-hoc inspection requests slow and informal — moving to electronic creates a clearer audit trail and makes 48-hour responses (proposal 3) feasible.
Proposal 2
Current 371.3(c) frames record review as a right granted to the parties. The NPRM would rewrite it as a regulatory duty imposed on brokers — meaning enforcement would shift from a contract-style civil claim toward direct FMCSA enforcement.
Proposal 3
Brokers would be required to provide the requested records within 48 hours of a request from a shipper or motor carrier. This is the single most-discussed provision in the NPRM — the current rule has no timeline at all, which is why informal requests today often go unanswered.
Proposal 4
The NPRM would explicitly address contractual provisions that purport to waive 371.3 inspection rights — a tactic used by some broker-carrier agreements today. The proposed language treats waiver clauses as inconsistent with the regulatory duty.
Timeline
Sources: Federal Register, FMCSA Docket.
The current rule grants the right; it doesn't prescribe a form. That means you can ask informally — but a written request citing the regulation is harder to ignore and creates the paper trail you'd need if disclosure is refused.
How OverTheRoad.AI handles this
The platform composes the formal disclosure request on your business letterhead — your MC#, your DOT#, your contact information, citing 49 CFR 371.3 — and emails it directly to the broker for the load you flagged. We don't make claims the regulation doesn't support, and we don't promise responses the regulation doesn't require. We just make the request easy enough to actually send.
Plain-text template. Substitute the bracketed fields. Names below are illustrative (Acme Logistics, Pioneer Freight) and do not reference any real broker or carrier.
This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Substitute your own information and adjust language as appropriate to your specific situation.
The disclosure right exists; whether any specific broker cooperates is a separate question. Here are the responses carriers most frequently report, and the regulatory context for each.
Many broker-carrier agreements include 371.3 waiver language. Whether such waivers are enforceable is contested — courts have not produced uniform precedent, and the FMCSA's 2024 NPRM specifically targets waiver provisions. A waiver does not automatically extinguish the regulatory right; consult counsel if disclosure on a meaningful dollar amount is being refused on this basis.
49 CFR 371.3 explicitly provides that each party to the transaction has a right to review the record. The regulation does not contain a 'commercial confidentiality' exception that overrides the inspection right. Confidentiality concerns might be addressed by NDA, but they don't unilaterally remove access to your own load's transaction record.
This is generally a reasonable response — you should send it through whatever channel the broker designates. Document the date and recipient; if the legal department then doesn't respond, you have a clear paper trail.
Under the current rule, there is no specified deadline, so silence isn't technically a violation in the way it would be under the proposed 48-hour window. Standard practice is to follow up after 7-10 business days, then escalate to a written followup, then to the FMCSA's National Consumer Complaint Database (NCCDB) if disclosure is being refused.
Retaliation against a carrier for exercising regulatory rights is a separate compliance question. The current 371.3 doesn't include explicit anti-retaliation language; the FMCSA NPRM also doesn't directly address it. Practically, this is a relationship question — most carriers exercising 371.3 rights do so on loads where the relationship is already over.
None of this is legal advice. For situations with real money on the line, consult a transportation attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.
Flag the load
Pick any load. We have your MC#, DOT#, and contact details on file.
We compose the request
Formal disclosure request citing 49 CFR 371.3, on your letterhead.
We email the broker
Sent to the broker's contact on the rate con. You get a copy.
Snap docs
Photo → filed automatically
Invoicing
Rate con → invoice in 60s
IFTA
3 min, not 3 hours
Detention
Auto-detected from ELD
Cash flow
14-day forecast
Compliance
Never miss a renewal
Yes. 49 CFR 371.3(c) gives each party to a brokered transaction the right to review the record of that transaction. A formal written request invoking that regulation is a standard exercise of an existing federal right.
The current rule requires the records to be kept and 'made available' to the parties on request. It does not specify a deadline or an explicit response duty. The FMCSA's 2024 proposed amendments would create a 48-hour response window, but as of May 2026 the proposal is not in force. In practice, written requests citing the regulation are taken more seriously than informal asks.
Many broker-carrier contracts include such waivers. Whether they're enforceable is a contested legal question; the FMCSA's 2024 NPRM explicitly targets waiver clauses. If meaningful money is involved, talk to a transportation attorney.
Per 371.3(a), the broker's record for each shipment must include the parties' names, BOL/freight bill number, broker compensation, freight charges collected from the shipper, the date of payment to the carrier, and a description of services. That's the data set you can request.
At least 3 years from the date of the transaction. Older records may have been routinely destroyed under the broker's retention schedule, so make requests promptly when discrepancies are noticed.
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