Trucking News · Nationwide · October 28, 2026

Truckers Hoping to Haul Knight-Swift Brokered Freight Face a Carrier Pool Down About 70% and a One-Year Rule

By Big Rig Daily Staff · Updated Oct 29, 2026, 8:13 a.m. PT

Update, 4:53 a.m. PT Oct. 28, 2026: Added details of the Supreme Court ruling Miller cited, Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, decided May 14, 2026.

Truckers and small carriers hoping to haul brokered freight may find the door narrower. Knight-Swift Transportation has reduced its approved brokerage carrier pool by about 70% over the past two years, CEO Adam Miller said Tuesday, Oct. 27, in a keynote at the second annual WEX OTR Summit in Jacksonville, Florida, FreightWaves reported.

"We're down 70% from maybe two years ago," Miller said. "Because we really vetted the type of carrier that we want."

The one-year rule

Knight-Swift requires carriers to have operated for at least one year before they can take part in its brokerage network, Miller said. "We wouldn't allow a carrier to come into our business unless they've been active for a year," he said.

Carriers apply for and manage USDOT numbers and operating authority in FMCSA's Motus registration system. Our Motus registration guide explains how sign-in works and which FMCSA line to call for help.

Why the company tightened vetting

Miller pointed to two pressures, according to FreightWaves. The first is cargo theft. "Cargo theft went from a couple bad actors to organized crime," he said.

The second is broker liability. Miller referred to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II and said brokers now "have some skin in the game if they're negligent in the carrier that they hire to move the load." He said a carrier with an unsafe CSA score over threshold can put a broker at risk, though he added that CSA scores are not a definitive measure of safety and could become a major factor in litigation.

The Supreme Court decided Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II on May 14, 2026. In a unanimous opinion, it held that a negligent-hiring claim against a freight broker, in that case C.H. Robinson, is not preempted by the federal law that limits state regulation of trucking prices, routes and services, because states keep their authority over motor vehicle safety, according to the Court's opinion. Miller's comments on what that means for brokers are his own view.
## Insurance and shipper concerns

Miller said big accident verdicts and possible broker liability could raise insurance costs for brokers. "Brokers are gonna have to pay multiples of what they're paying now to keep the same insurance limits," he said.

What it could mean for capacity

Miller said stricter vetting could shrink the number of carriers eligible for brokered freight and make it harder for new trucking companies, especially those that rely heavily on spot freight, to get loads. "That's going to eliminate probably the cheapest capacity, the less compliant carriers out there in the market," he said.

He said stricter federal enforcement and more selective broker-carrier relationships could keep capacity from surging as it has in past upcycles, and could lead to a steadier recovery. FreightWaves added that a supply-driven recovery could mean higher rates and longer-lasting capacity limits even without a big rebound in freight volume in 2027.

Quick facts

• Brokerage carrier pool: down about 70% from roughly two years ago, per Miller.
• Entry rule: carriers must have been active at least one year.

Big Rig Daily has also covered Knight-Swift's plan to ask shippers for double-digit rate increases, Landstar's smaller approved carrier list, how cargo thieves used deception to take AI equipment, Marten's view that enforcement is pulling unqualified drivers off the market and how the English proficiency check works at the roadside. For contract pricing, see truckload contract rates. To price a load, try the trucking load rate calculator.

A question for readers

If you run your own authority, how would a one-year rule change the way you find freight?

Save this story for later

Save this to Pinterest