1Definitions and documents

In these terms, Smart Carrier means Smart Carrier LLC, the property broker registered with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration under MC1601525. Customer means the person or business that engages Smart Carrier to arrange a shipment, and includes anyone the Customer authorizes to release or accept a Vehicle. Vehicle means each vehicle described on a Transport Confirmation. Carrier means the motor carrier Smart Carrier assigns to move a Vehicle. Transport Confirmation means the written document Smart Carrier issues for each Shipment, setting out the Vehicle, the route, the price, the pickup and delivery windows, and the assigned Carrier. Shipment means the movement of a Vehicle under a Transport Confirmation. Including means including without limitation.

Up to three documents can apply to a Shipment. Where they conflict, they rank in this order: a signed master transport agreement between Smart Carrier and the Customer; the Transport Confirmation for that Shipment; then these terms. The Bill of Lading governs the relationship between the Customer and the Carrier for the movement of the Vehicle. Smart Carrier is not a party to it, and it does not vary these terms.

2Role of Smart Carrier and how Carriers are selected

Smart Carrier is a property broker, bonded in the amount of $75,000. It arranges transportation. It does not transport, does not operate trucks, does not employ drivers, and at no point takes possession, custody, or control of a Vehicle.

Every Shipment is performed by an independent motor carrier operating under its own authority, its own drivers, and its own insurance. That Carrier, not Smart Carrier, holds the Vehicle and is the party liable for loss or damage occurring in its custody under 49 U.S.C. 14706. Nothing in these terms makes Smart Carrier and any Carrier partners, joint venturers, agents, or employees of one another.

Smart Carrier selects Carriers on the basis of active FMCSA registration and operating authority, safety data published by FMCSA, cargo insurance in force, and its own record with that Carrier. Authority and insurance are confirmed before each load is dispatched. That is a standard of reasonable care in selection. It is not a warranty that a Carrier will perform without fault. Smart Carrier does not control or supervise a Carrier's drivers, routing, equipment, maintenance, or operations, and is not responsible for their acts or omissions. Smart Carrier acts as agent for neither the Customer nor the Carrier beyond arranging the Shipment described in the Transport Confirmation.

3Price is locked

The Total Price stated for a Shipment is locked when the Shipment is confirmed and will not change. Smart Carrier does not quote a low number to win the order and raise it later. The broker fee is disclosed rather than buried in the total.

The only charges that can be added are ones the Customer causes: a dry run, a cancellation after dispatch, storage, a change of pickup or delivery address, a Vehicle that turns out to be inoperable at pickup after being described as operable, or personal belongings or prohibited items in the Vehicle. Any such charge is quoted to the Customer and agreed in writing before the Vehicle is loaded. Nothing is added after the fact.

4Payment, non-payment, and lien

Payment method: Cash or certified funds paid to the driver at delivery (COD). No deposit is collected and no card is charged in advance. Payment is due in full at delivery, before the Vehicle is released from the trailer. The driver is not authorized to release the Vehicle without payment. Any payment method other than the one stated on the Transport Confirmation must be confirmed in writing with Smart Carrier in advance.

If payment is not made at delivery, the Carrier may exercise its lien over the Vehicle and place it in storage at the Customer's expense until the amount due, plus accrued storage and any redelivery cost, is paid. Storage and redelivery are charged at cost. Smart Carrier will tell the Customer where the Vehicle is and what is owed, but has no authority to release a Vehicle a Carrier is holding under lien.

Amounts not paid when due bear interest at the lower of 1.5 percent per month or the maximum rate Florida law allows. The Customer may not withhold or set off any amount on account of a pending or disputed claim; a claim is handled under the claims section and does not suspend payment.

5Schedule and windows

Pickup and delivery are quoted as dated windows on each Transport Confirmation. These are windows, not appointments, and time is not of the essence. Smart Carrier quotes ranges rather than single times because a truck's day depends on traffic, weather, loading at other stops, and hours-of-service limits. The window narrows as the date approaches, and the driver contacts both locations directly to set an arrival time. Smart Carrier notifies the Customer the same day of any change.

Neither Smart Carrier nor the Carrier is liable for loss caused by delay, including rental or substitute transportation cost, missed events, missed sales, or lost resale proceeds.

6Verified pickup and verified delivery

Before pickup, Smart Carrier sends the Customer the assigned Carrier's company name and MC number, a photograph of the truck and trailer, and a photograph of the driver's license. The Customer, or whoever releases the Vehicle, must check the driver against that photograph and must not release the Vehicle to anyone who does not match.

At delivery, the driver photographs the identification of the person accepting the Vehicle.

This protocol is not a formality. There is an active fraud scheme in which criminals take over load board accounts, intercept live dispatch orders, and collect vehicles using a driver who was never assigned to the load. Verification at both ends is how that is stopped. A Customer who releases a Vehicle to a driver who does not match the photographs sent, without first calling Smart Carrier, does so at its own risk and indemnifies Smart Carrier for the resulting loss.

7Identity verification and personal information

The verification protocol above involves photographs of a driver's license and of the identification of the person accepting the Vehicle. The Customer consents to that collection and confirms it has authority to consent on behalf of anyone it designates to release or accept a Vehicle.

Those images exist for one purpose: confirming the right vehicle went to the right driver and reached the right person. They are kept with the Shipment file, are never sold or used for marketing, and are disclosed only to a party to a claim, an insurer, or law enforcement, or where the law requires it. A Customer may ask what is held for a Shipment and may ask for deletion once the Shipment is closed and the claim period has run.

8Condition records and the Bill of Lading

The Bill of Lading is the contract of carriage between the Customer and the Carrier. It is also the single most important document in any damage claim, because insurers treat it as the record of what the Vehicle looked like when it was picked up and when it arrived.

At pickup, the driver records the Vehicle's condition on the Bill of Lading, photographs the Vehicle from all angles inside and out, records the starting mileage, and photographs the dashboard.

What the Customer must do at pickup: do not release the Vehicle until you have the Bill of Lading, paper or electronic, in hand. It must show the starting mileage and at least 20 photographs covering the Vehicle from every angle, documenting its condition before loading. If the driver cannot produce it, call Smart Carrier before the Vehicle goes on the trailer.

What the Customer must do at delivery: ask the driver for the Bill of Lading, paper or electronic, showing the Vehicle's condition on arrival, with the delivery mileage written on it. Inspect the Vehicle before signing, and write any new damage on the Bill of Lading before signing it. If the driver does not have the Bill of Lading, photograph the Vehicle while it is still on the trailer and photograph the truck with its license plate visible, and send both to Smart Carrier the same day.

A signed delivery Bill of Lading with no damage noted is treated by every cargo insurer as proof the Vehicle arrived undamaged. Failing to follow these steps does not by itself extinguish a claim, but it removes the evidence a claim is built on, makes recovery substantially harder, and may reduce what is recoverable to the extent the missing records prevented the loss from being proved.

9Cargo insurance and its limits

The Carrier maintains cargo insurance under its own policy. Every cargo policy has a per-load limit, a per-vehicle limit, and a deductible. There is no such thing as a cargo policy without a deductible.

Certificate of insurance for the assigned carrier is available on request before pickup. Where a declared value is stated on the Transport Confirmation and that value approaches or exceeds the Carrier's per-vehicle cargo limit, Smart Carrier discloses the gap in writing before pickup rather than leaving the Customer to discover it after a loss. Supplemental transit coverage can be arranged at the Customer's cost and must be bound before pickup. Where no value is declared, recovery is limited to the Carrier's standard per-vehicle cargo limit.

Where Smart Carrier provides a copy of a Carrier's certificate of insurance, it does so for information. A certificate is not the policy and confers no rights under it. Smart Carrier does not insure any Vehicle and does not warrant an insurer's decision on a claim.

10Damage claims

New damage must be noted on the delivery Bill of Lading before it is signed. The Customer should send photographs and a written description to Smart Carrier as soon as possible, and in any event within 5 business days of delivery, so the Carrier and its insurer are put on notice while the evidence is fresh.

Nothing in these terms shortens any period the law allows for a claim against a Carrier. A cargo claim against an interstate motor carrier may be filed within nine months of delivery, and suit may be brought within two years and one day of a claim being declined, under 49 U.S.C. 14706(e). Prompt notice is asked for because it makes a claim far more likely to succeed, not because a later claim is barred.

The Customer will cooperate in the claim: provide the Bill of Lading, photographs, and repair estimates on request, keep the Vehicle available for inspection by the Carrier or its insurer for a reasonable period before repairs begin, and tell Smart Carrier before settling directly with a Carrier or an insurer. Repairs begun before an inspection opportunity has been given may not be recoverable.

Damage is valued at the reasonable cost of repair at a facility qualified to work on that make. Where the Vehicle is a total loss, it is valued at its actual cash value immediately before the loss. Upgrades beyond the Vehicle's pre-loss condition are not covered. Where a total loss is paid in full, the paying insurer is entitled to the salvage and to title. To the extent Smart Carrier or its insurer pays any amount, it is subrogated to the Customer's rights against the Carrier and its insurer, and the Customer will sign what is reasonably needed to give effect to that.

Smart Carrier administers the claim. Claims below approximately $10,000 are pushed to the Carrier for direct out-of-pocket payment, which is faster than an insurance claim and does not generate a vehicle history record. Larger claims go through the Carrier's cargo insurance. A cargo insurance claim creates a CARFAX record against the Vehicle, which affects resale value; that is one reason smaller claims are handled directly.

Smart Carrier is not an insurer, is not the Carrier, and does not guarantee the Carrier's performance or its insurer's decision. What Smart Carrier does undertake is to pursue the claim, keep the Customer informed, and not go quiet once the Vehicle is off the truck.

12Rights that cannot be limited

Nothing in these terms waives or limits any right the Customer has under law that cannot be waived or limited by agreement, including rights under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Where the Customer is an individual acting for personal rather than business purposes, the limitations in these terms apply only to the extent the law allows, and if a limitation is unenforceable against that Customer, the remainder of these terms stays in force.

13What is not covered

Personal property left in the Vehicle. Pre-existing damage. Mechanical, electrical, or fluid failures not caused by handling, including battery discharge and tire pressure loss. Damage arising from a defect or condition disclosed or discoverable at pickup. Loss caused by acts of God, civil authority, or the Customer's own instructions.

On open transport, the vehicle is exposed to weather and road debris. Small paint chips and windshield chips from road debris are inherent to open transport and are not the Carrier's liability; enclosed transport should be selected where that risk is unacceptable. On enclosed transport, the vehicle is not exposed to weather or road debris in transit, and deck position within a multi-car enclosed trailer cannot be guaranteed on a multi-stop route and is not a defect in service.

14Customer obligations and warranties

The Vehicle must be available, accessible, and ready at the pickup location during the pickup window, with no more than a quarter tank of fuel, alarms disabled, and keys provided. Personal belongings are limited as set out below. A person aged 18 or over with photo identification must be present at both pickup and delivery, and must carry out the pickup and delivery steps described in the Bill of Lading section above.

The Customer must accurately disclose whether the Vehicle runs, drives, steers, and brakes, and must disclose any modification affecting ground clearance, width, or height, because a misdescribed vehicle can make the assigned equipment unusable. An inoperable vehicle needs a winch and different equipment. If a Vehicle described as operable turns out not to be, the Customer will be quoted the difference before loading; if the assigned truck cannot take it, the load becomes a dry run.

The Customer warrants that it owns the Vehicle or is authorized by the owner to ship it, that the description given to Smart Carrier is accurate and complete, that no lien, court order, or other restriction prevents the Vehicle from being moved, and that the Vehicle is not being moved for any unlawful purpose.

15Personal belongings

Neither Smart Carrier nor the Carrier is licensed to transport household goods, and cargo insurance does not cover personal property. Anything left in the Vehicle travels entirely at the Customer's risk.

Where the Carrier permits items to be left in the Vehicle, three limits apply. Weight: total contents must stay under 100 lbs, because excess weight affects the trailer's load rating and the Carrier's DOT weight compliance. Visibility: items must sit low in the trunk or rear cargo area and must not obstruct the driver's view of the Vehicle during loading or unloading. Valuables: nothing of value should be left inside, including cash, documents, electronics, jewelry, or keys to anything other than the Vehicle.

If the driver arrives and the contents exceed these limits, the Customer must remove the excess before loading. If that is not possible, the Customer will be quoted an additional charge before loading, or the load is treated as a dry run.

16Prohibited items

The following must never be left in the Vehicle: firearms or ammunition; explosives, compressed gas, fuel containers, or any hazardous material as defined in 49 CFR Part 172; illegal substances; live animals; perishable goods; and anything whose possession or interstate transport is unlawful.

A driver who finds a prohibited item may refuse the Vehicle, in which case the load becomes a dry run. The Customer is responsible for any fine, penalty, seizure, delay, or damage resulting from a prohibited item, including loss to other vehicles on the same trailer.

17Indemnity

The Customer will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Smart Carrier and its owners, officers, and employees against any claim, loss, fine, penalty, or expense, including reasonable attorney's fees, arising from a Vehicle described inaccurately as to operability, dimensions, modifications, or weight; personal belongings or prohibited items in the Vehicle; release of a Vehicle to a driver who did not match the verification photographs; the Customer's lack of authority to ship the Vehicle; the Customer's breach of these terms; or the Customer's own negligence. This does not extend to anything caused by Smart Carrier's own negligence or misconduct.

18Cancellation, dry run, and storage

The Customer may cancel at no cost at any time before a Carrier is assigned. After a Carrier is assigned and dispatched, a cancellation fee of $150 applies. If a driver arrives and the Vehicle is not available, not ready, or not as described, a dry run fee of $250 applies. If the Customer is not available to accept delivery within the delivery window, storage is charged at cost until the Vehicle can be delivered.

These amounts are a reasonable estimate, agreed in advance, of the loss Smart Carrier and the Carrier actually suffer when a dispatched truck is stood down, because that loss is difficult to calculate after the fact. They are not a penalty.

19Events outside anyone's control

Neither Smart Carrier nor the Carrier is liable for delay or failure to perform caused by an event beyond its reasonable control, including weather, natural disaster, fire, flood, road closure, accident, civil unrest, labor action, act of government or civil authority, epidemic, cyberattack, or the failure of a third party's systems. Where such an event occurs, the Customer is told promptly and the schedule adjusts by the length of the delay. If performance becomes impossible, the Shipment may be cancelled with no charge to either side beyond work already performed. This section does not excuse an obligation to pay for a Shipment already performed.

20Electronic records and signatures

The Customer agrees to receive Transport Confirmations, Bills of Lading, condition photographs, invoices, and notices electronically, and agrees that an electronic Bill of Lading or Transport Confirmation has the same force as a paper original. An electronic signature or electronic acceptance has the same effect as a handwritten signature.

The Customer may request paper copies at any time and may withdraw consent to electronic delivery by writing to Smart Carrier. Most Carriers now issue Bills of Lading electronically, so withdrawing consent may limit which Carriers can be assigned to a Shipment.

21Acceptance

These terms apply to every Shipment Smart Carrier arranges. Smart Carrier issues a written Transport Confirmation for each Shipment setting out the Vehicle, the route, the price, the windows, and the assigned Carrier. Tendering the Vehicle to the assigned driver, or accepting delivery of the Vehicle, constitutes acceptance of these terms for that Shipment. A Customer who does not accept these terms must say so in writing before the Vehicle is tendered.

Where a signed master transport agreement is in place between Smart Carrier and the Customer, that agreement controls to the extent it conflicts with these terms. Where the Customer is an individual rather than a business, Smart Carrier asks for a signed agreement for the Shipment instead of relying on this section.

22Resolving disputes

Before either party files suit, it will give the other written notice describing the dispute and allow 15 days to resolve it. This does not prevent either party from seeking urgent relief from a court, and does not extend any deadline in these terms or under law.

These terms are governed by the laws of Florida, without regard to its conflict of laws rules, and the parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts sitting in Duval County, Florida. In any action arising from these terms, the prevailing party is entitled to recover its reasonable attorney's fees and costs.

23General

These terms and the Transport Confirmation for a Shipment are the entire agreement for that Shipment and supersede any prior quote, email, or conversation. Smart Carrier may update these terms. The version in force for a Shipment is the version published at https://smartcarrierusa.com/terms on the date that Shipment is confirmed; earlier versions are retained and provided on request.

The Customer may not assign a Shipment or these terms without Smart Carrier's written consent. Smart Carrier may assign to an affiliate or a successor to its business. Notices must be in writing to the contact details on the Transport Confirmation; email is sufficient.

No Carrier, insurer, or other third party is a beneficiary of these terms. A failure to enforce any provision is not a waiver of it. If any provision is held unenforceable, it is limited or severed to the minimum extent necessary and the rest remains in force. The sections covering insurance limits, claims, limitation of liability and time to sue, indemnity, dispute resolution, and this section survive completion of a Shipment. Headings are for convenience only.