Do these first, whatever went wrong
Three things hold true for every problem on this page. Do them before you work out what the problem is called.
- Document what you are seeing now — photographs, counts and the time you noticed. Evidence gets harder to collect the longer you wait.
- Leave the freight and packaging alone — do not move, unwrap or discard anything unless safety or operations force it.
- Tell us immediately — most of these problems have a window where something can still be done, and the window is shorter than people expect.
The truck did not come, or came late
Use missed pickup when the truck has not arrived.
Use carrier no-show when the carrier has gone quiet.
Use freight is late when the shipment is already moving but the ETA is slipping.
Use missed delivery appointment when a delivery window has been missed.
The freight arrived wrong
Use short shipment for missing pieces.
Use concealed damage when damage is found after a clean receipt.
Use refused delivery when the receiver will not accept the freight.
Use rejected freight when rejected freight already needs a next destination.
Money and claims
Use freight claim process to organize a cargo claim.
Use salvage in a freight claim before damaged goods are sold, destroyed or discarded.
What your broker does behind the scenes
Whatever the problem is called, the broker's side of it follows the same order.
Confirm, communicate, decide, document
- Confirm the factsWhere is the truck, what happened and when, is it still moving, what is the ETA now, and is the freight affected? A useful update starts with facts, not guesses.
- Work out who needs to knowA late delivery may need the receiver to approve a new appointment. A breakdown needs an updated ETA. Damage needs photographs and notes on the delivery receipt. A tracking gap may only need the driver to confirm location.
- Record what changedWhat happened, when, who was contacted, what was decided and what the new plan is. That record matters if the shipment later becomes a claim, a charge dispute or a service review.
- Keep you informedA good update answers three questions: what happened, what it changes and what happens next. "We are checking on it" is fine for a few minutes while facts come in, not as the whole plan.
If a driver is running short on legal driving hours, that is a real constraint, not a choice: federal hours-of-service rules limit how long a driver may drive before rest, and a new plan has to work within them. If the tracking has simply gone quiet, how to track a freight shipment explains why updates stop and what to ask.
What is true in every case
- The freight is evidence. So is its packaging.
- Written beats remembered. Note it while you are looking at it.
- Nothing here is a substitute for the shipment’s own bill of lading terms.
- Telling us early costs nothing. Telling us late can cost the option.
How FCC handles this
When something changes in transit, Robo Load Builder already has the load details, carrier contacts and tracking activity tied to the shipment, with communication prepared for delays, breakdowns, missed appointments and tracking issues. That lets us move straight into solving the problem instead of rebuilding the load first; the decisions stay ours. See tracking and communication →
Not sure which problem page fits?
Send us the load number, what happened, where the freight is now and what the driver or receiver is waiting on.
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