Owner Operators - Verifying Credit?

[AccountsReceivable@DRC]

Question for carriers on the forum...

When you have a potential new owner operator coming on board - what resources do you utilize to verify their credit and/or their business dealings? What information (that is available)do you verify?

Owner Ops are essentially a "business" therefore their credit worthiness also needs to be assessed. Just curious how this gets handled from a credit perspective and what steps are required.

Thanking in advance for any replies.

 

[whatiship]

You are absolutely correct, this is a very important an sensitive issue.
I know several carriers who will not hire an owner operator unless they meet certain credit requirements. The reason is that they are concerned that someone who is in bad financial shape is more likely to not properly look after their maintenance on their truck or may be more likely to steal. They may also be more likely to jump to another carrier if they think it pays a little more.
On the other hand, sometimes owner operators who are in great financial shape are a little more likely to be too independent and not want to work the extra hours or do loads that they don't like.
Ideally you want someone who is somewhere in the middle.

 

[Darlene]

we will also do a "credit" check on our o/ops .. we have a form that they have to complete, Fair Credit Act Disclosure Statement ..that covers from credit report to drug and alcohol test results from previous employers.