CarrierHQ Guides CA Trucking Fleets Through Indie Contractor Laws

Motor carrier industry software and solutions developer CarrierHQ has announced a mobile-friendly portal that’s now accessible in California, amid the AB5 legislative environment, according to a press release.

The company provides a “comprehensive solution to reclassification and recruiting issues faced by large fleets and brokers, by enabling independent contractors to form or grow their own fleets,” the release said. The solution is meant to aid transportation companies to avoid “major pitfalls” and “increase operational capacity.”

“Most trucking companies have a business model that leverages independent owner-operators, and that model is facing continuous challenges from regulators and litigants to maintain true independence,” said Scott Prince, CEO of CarrierHQ. “Our platform is capable of providing these large trucking companies [with] customized user experiences to assist independent owner-operators in creating and managing their own stand-alone fleet[s], by enabling these owner-operator[s] to create their own legal entity, apply for their DOT authority, procure motor carrier insurance, obtain an ELD, establish their own fuel cards, create an invoicing solution and provide payment processing.”

The portal provides motor carrier insurance through a tie-up with Aon, which provides risk, retirement and health solutions. The insurance is offered without premium financing, and allows for flexible payment options, including a nothing-down option.

Aon’s technology rates each driver based on how they perform when driving, and rates are calculated based on those scores. Safe drivers will see their premiums go down, and risky drivers will see the opposite. Rates are adjusted monthly.

“Because of some key challenges the industry faces, Aon and CarrierHQ working together give[s] the trucking industry a sustainable model for the creation and support of small fleets, which represent a large portion of the industry’s freight capacity,” said Mark Epperson, executive director of Aon.

AB5 was put into law last year. Just this month, a judge denied a request from both Uber and Postmates to stop enforcement of the legislation. The law makes it harder for companies to classify their workers as independent contractors, which has reverberations for the trucking industry as well.