In "The Broken Safety System Threatening Shippers and Brokers," Joe Lynch and Chris Burroughs, President and CEO of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), discuss the fallout from a landmark Supreme Court ruling and rising freight fraud are reshaping the logistics liability landscape.

About Chris Burroughs

Chris Burroughs is the President and CEO of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), a position he assumed in November 2024. With over 14 years at TIA, he previously served as Vice President of Government Affairs, overseeing legislative and regulatory efforts before Congress and federal agencies. Before joining TIA, Burroughs gained valuable experience on Capitol Hill, working for the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee and the House Natural Resources Committee. He also served as Director of Government Affairs at the Twenty-First Century Group, advocating for clients in transportation, telecommunications, health care, and defense. Burroughs holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

About TIA

The Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) is the professional organization of the $343 billion third-party logistics industry. TIA is the only organization exclusively representing transportation intermediaries of all disciplines doing business in domestic and international commerce. TIA is the voice of transportation intermediaries to shippers, carriers, government officials, and international organizations. Learn more about TIA at www.tianet.org

Key Takeaways: The Broken Safety System Threatening Shippers and Brokers

In "The Broken Safety System Threatening Shippers and Brokers," Joe Lynch and Chris Burroughs, President and CEO of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), discuss ow the fallout from a landmark Supreme Court ruling and rising freight fraud are reshaping the logistics liability landscape.
The Montgomery Decision Resets the Liability Landscape: The Supreme Court's recent 9-0 ruling in the Montgomery case (involving C.H. Robinson) eliminated the long-standing F4A federal preemption defense for brokers regarding carrier safety selection. While 31 states had already rejected this defense prior to the ruling, the decision officially shifts safety and negligent selection liability standards back to a patchwork of differing state regulations.
TIA Petitions the FMCSA for a National Carrier Selection Standard: In response to the confusion caused by the Montgomery decision, the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) filed a petition for rulemaking with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). TIA is pushing for a clear, national federal standard to dictate exactly what checks a shipper or broker must perform when vetting and selecting a trucking company, eliminating state-by-state confusion.
The Core Elements of TIA's Proposed Vetting Standard: TIA outlines three baseline data points that the federal government should mandate for a secure carrier selection process: operating authority (ensuring full compliance with the FMCSA), valid insurance (confirming active, legitimate coverage to combat marketplace fraud), and safety status (verifying the carrier has not been placed out of service for safety violations or paperwork compliance issues).
A Broken Data System Leaves 94% of Carriers Unrated: A major hurdle in carrier vetting is that 94% of trucking companies remain "unrated" by the federal government. Because the FMCSA relies on strenuous, physical audits and suffers from limited inspector resources (drastically worsened during the pandemic), they only audit carriers that trigger red flags. TIA strongly advocates shifting from this outdated physical audit system to an absolute, data-driven safety rating algorithm.
TIA Demands the Release of the "High-Risk Carrier List": The FMCSA maintains an internal database of approximately 3,000 to 4,000 trucking companies categorized as "high-risk," based on their Safety Measurement System data. As a key part of their petition, TIA is demanding that the government publicize this list so brokers and shippers have the transparency needed to actively avoid dangerous carriers.
The Sophistication and Rise of Strategic Freight Fraud: Freight fraud and cargo theft have evolved past opportunistic crimes into highly organized, international cyber syndicates. Strategic theft has skyrocketed by 1,500% since 2020. Bad actors are shifting tactics—moving away from registering new fraudulent entities to buying up clean, legitimate, 2-year-old authorities on online marketplaces, executing massive "heists," and then vanishing.
Industry Consolidation and the Value of Trusted Associations: The compounding costs of increased insurance premiums, tighter vetting processes, and necessary technology stacks are expected to drive significant market consolidation, forcing smaller players out. Because of this complex environment, shippers are increasingly looking to work with brokers tied to professional organizations like TIA, which enforces a strict code of ethics, offers ongoing education, and acts as the exclusive advocacy voice for the $343 billion 3PL industry on Capitol Hill.

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The Broken Safety System Threatening Shippers and Brokers with Chris Burroughs

The Logistics of Logistics

The Broken Safety System Threatening Shippers and Brokers with Chris Burroughs