What is a carrier onboarding pack?
A carrier onboarding pack is the set of checks a shipper or logistics company runs before it gives work to a transport subcontractor. It confirms that the company is registered and licensed, that its vehicles and drivers hold valid documents and insurance, that it will follow your safety and tracking rules, and that both sides agree on service levels. The result is a documented approval decision you can show to auditors and customers.
This carrier onboarding checklist in Word puts all of it in one editable file, with a scoring table and an approval sign-off.
Carrier onboarding checklist: which documents to collect
| Area | Typical documents |
|---|---|
| Company | Commercial registration or trade license, transport operating license, VAT registration, authorized signatory, bank letter, HSE policy, signed agreements |
| Insurance | Motor insurance for every vehicle, goods-in-transit cover with a limit per consignment, liability and employee cover where required |
| Vehicles | Registration, insurance and periodic inspection for each plate, operating card where required, tracker IMEI |
| Drivers | ID or residence number, license class and expiry, professional permit and medical fitness where required, induction |
| Special loads | Permits for dangerous goods, food, medicines, waste or oversize loads where they apply |
Names and requirements differ by country. The pack lists document types and marks local items with [verify locally] instead of naming one authority's rules.
How to onboard a new transport carrier
- Send the document lists in sections 2 to 4 to the carrier and agree a date to receive them.
- Check and record each document with its number, expiry date and who checked the original.
- Review safety, tracking and service levels with the carrier and record a yes or no for each requirement.
- Score the carrier on eight weighted criteria, out of 100, and apply the gate rule for missing mandatory documents.
- Sign the approval with conditions and a review date, and ask the carrier to sign the declaration in Appendix A.
How the carrier score out of 100 is calculated
The weights are a starting point: documents, insurance, fleet condition, drivers and safety at 15 each, tracking and capacity at 10, price at 5. Change them to fit your risk, but keep the total at 100 so the score stays out of 100.
Worked example: a carrier scoring 77
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Weighted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company documents | 15 | 5 | 15 |
| Insurance | 15 | 4 | 12 |
| Fleet condition and age | 15 | 3 | 9 |
| Drivers | 15 | 4 | 12 |
| Safety | 15 | 4 | 12 |
| Tracking and data | 10 | 3 | 6 |
| Capacity and coverage | 10 | 4 | 8 |
| Price and terms | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| Total | 100 | 77 |
Fleet condition scores 15 × 3 ÷ 5 = 9. The total of 77 falls in the 65 to 79 band, so the carrier is approved with conditions. In section 9 you might record: fit trackers to the two vehicles without one before their first trip, and replace a truck older than the agreed age limit within three months. All mandatory documents were valid, so the gate rule does not apply.
Verify local requirements before you approve
Licenses for goods transport, operating cards, driver qualifications, driving and rest hours, minimum insurance and rules on collecting vehicle and driver data are set by national and sometimes regional authorities, and they change. The pack does not state any country's rules. Before you use it, check each item marked [verify locally] against current requirements from the competent transport, tax and labor authorities, and confirm insurance limits with your insurer and the agreement with your legal adviser. The pack is a working template, not legal advice.
Common carrier onboarding mistakes
- Checking copies only. Record who saw the original or official copy, and when.
- Forgetting expiry dates. A carrier approved in January can be uninsured in June. Check expiry dates every month.
- Approving the company, not the vehicles. Every plate and every driver used on your work needs a complete row before dispatch.
- No written tracking terms. Agree what data is shared, how often and for how long, and that drivers are informed.
- Letting the carrier subcontract again. Require written approval before any work passes to another party.
- Scoring once and never again. Re-score every year and after a serious incident.
Limits of the carrier onboarding pack
The pack records what the carrier provides and what you check; it cannot confirm that a document is genuine or that insurance will pay a claim. Verify documents with the issuing body where you can, and read insurance policies, not only certificates. Scores depend on the judgment of the people filling them in, so agree what each score means before you compare carriers.