Best Practices Archives - Central Dispatch

Selecting the right transportation partner is one of the most important decisions for dealers, fleets, and shippers. In this episode of the Auto Remarketing Podcast, Central Dispatch leaders Shanna Wise and Blake Bentley share expert guidance on what to consider before making that choice. They outline five key questions that can help businesses protect their vehicles, reduce risk, and ensure a smooth shipping experience.

Auto Remarketing Podcast · SPONSORED EPISODE: Five questions to ask before choosing a transportation partner

The discussion goes beyond the basics, addressing common challenges in automotive logistics and how technology like electronic bills of lading (eBOLs) can improve transparency and accountability. Shanna and Blake also highlight why clear communication and verified credentials matter when building trust with carriers. If you’re looking for practical steps to strengthen your transportation strategy, this episode is packed with insights you won’t want to miss.

Manage your Preferred and Blocked companies to shape who you see—and who sees you—on Central Dispatch.

In the fast-moving world of automotive logistics, trust and efficiency are critical. Whether you’re managing a high volume of dispatches or building long-term relationships with reliable partners, having control over your network helps you reduce risk, save time, and operate with confidence.

Central Dispatch’s Preferred and Blocked functionality allows you to manage your professional relationships directly in-platform—promoting visibility for trusted partners and avoiding those you no longer wish to work with.

Preferred Carriers: Streamline Your Workflow

Adding companies to your Preferred network makes it easier to work with trusted partners. Preferred status improves visibility and simplifies selection across key workflows:

Carriers can filter listings to show only Preferred shippers when searching for vehicles.

Shippers will see Preferred carriers at the top of the list when creating a dispatch or assigning a load.

Both can view and manage Preferred status directly from the Network tab of the Company Profile page.

Blocked Partners: Visibility Matters

Blocking a company removes visibility across key workflows—for both sides. Whether you’re a shipper or a carrier, this feature helps you maintain control and protect your business from unwanted interactions.

Carriers will not see listings from shippers they have blocked or shippers who have blocked them.

Shippers will not see carriers they have blocked or carriers who have blocked them.

Both can view and manage Blocked status directly from the Network tab of the Company Profile page.

This mutual visibility removal ensures your network stays focused on trusted relationships—helping you avoid surprises and operate with confidence.

Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Network

Actively manage your network: Regularly review and update your Preferred and Blocked companies based on recent experiences.

Use filters wisely: When searching for loads use the ‘Shippers Preferences’ filter to streamline your workflow.

Ensure proper access: Only users with Owner or Admin roles can manage these lists—make sure the right team members are set up to make updates.

Ready to take action?

Read the step-by-step guide to manage your network with confidence.

Digital logistics has brought many benefits to both shippers and carriers, but it’s also increased the risk of phishing scams. Make sure you know how to identify and avoid them with these tips and best practices from our Marketplace Integrity Team.

How To Spot Phishing

Most phishing scams start when a bad actor contacts you via text or email, asking you to click a link. That link often looks like the Central Dispatch login page, but is in fact a phishing site designed to capture your username and password.
Other times they’ll direct you to a fake FMCSA website where you’ll be prompted to enter your FMCSA details.

Best Practices To Keep Your Business Safe

Pay attention to notifications from Central Dispatch alerting you to changes in your user or company profile. Take action by calling Central Dispatch immediately if this looks suspicious to you. Never click on any links received via email and/or text from third parties directing you to Central Dispatch.
Always type the URL in your browser before entering login or account information.
Take precautions if anyone is offering you money to re-route a delivery. Request that all changes and communications be made within the Central Dispatch platform.
Take extra care to double-check details, like confirming the identity of the shipper or carrier. This can prevent costly mistakes and keep your business safe.

Visit our Safer Shipping Hub to learn more about other ways you can keep your business safe.

Questions about security or fraud? Contact our Marketplace Integrity team at CentralDispatchFraudClaims@coxautoinc.com

What this means for your account, and how it protects you

With increasing security challenges in the transportation industry, keeping your Central Dispatch account protected is more important than ever — and there’s a quick and easy way to do it.

Verifying your phone number allows you to use a secure multi-factor authentication method by receiving future one-time passcodes via SMS text messages instead of emails. Receiving multi-factor authentication passcodes via SMS is the most reliable and strongest method of verification.

We first began requiring multi-factor authentication for all accounts last year and are now encouraging all users to verify their phone numbers to shift to receiving one-time passcodes for MFA via SMS text messages.

It only takes a few seconds to add your phone number and enter the code sent to your phone via SMS text message. Once you verify your phone number, we will send all future MFA one-time passcodes via SMS text message, making it difficult for bad actors to access your account.

Each employee or contractor under a Central Dispatch account will need their own login credentials for fast, secure access to the platform. These credentials can be set up via User Management and will allow each user to use their own phone number as the verification method. Phone numbers will not be able to be shared across usernames inside the platform.

Make sure your current phone number is linked to your account >

View the User Management demo video >

Set up your employees with User Management >

With fraud on the rise across the industry, it’s more important than ever to protect your trucks and cargo. Read these guidelines to make sure you’re staying safe from dispatch to delivery.

Secure Your Account*

Set up User Management to give each person in your organization their own log in, and avoid the risks of sharing account details.
Assign each person a role, and decide who can see sensitive business information.
Multi-factor authentication is automatically enabled. Set up your phone number as the verification method.
Owners and admins should review the user history regularly to monitor unexpected changes.

Protect Your FMCSA Details

Use strong passwords and never share your FMCSA details with anyone.
Make sure that your USDOT# and authorization status is up-to-date on Central Dispatch, so shippers can easily verify you.

Identify Common Scams

Be wary of unusually high offers, they are usually a sign of fraudulent behavior. If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is.
If you ever see a different carrier’s name on a Bill of Lading, it’s likely they are double brokering a load.
Scammers will often pose as shippers and offer extra money to reroute vehicles. So be cautious of anyone requesting to change a vehicle’s pick-up location.

Secure Communications During Transit

Encourage shippers to dispatch vehicles to you using our fully electronic dispatch system: it greatly reduces the risk of falling victim to fake texts and phone calls.
Be sure to assign each load to a specific driver, so shippers can easily verify driver identity at pickup.
If a shipper requests to change delivery instructions, it’s important to update the dispatch sheet in Central Dispatch to match.

Review After Drop-Off

After delivery, always rate and review your carrier partner. It’s a great way to help others avoid bad actors, and create a more transparent marketplace.
You can choose to publish your review later at a later date, you can more confidently and honestly rate your partners.

Trust Our Team

Our Marketplace Integrity team is constantly evolving our vetting processes and enhancing integrity across the transportation lifecycle.
We’re partnering with other industry leaders to lobby Congress, advocating for stronger protections against automotive fraud and encouraging action and accountability from the FMCSA.

Learn more about staying safe while transporting vehicles at centraldispatch.com/secure

*While Central Dispatch is here to support you with best practices to keep your account secure, you are responsible for any conduct that occurs on your account.

With fraud on the rise across the transportation industry, it’s more important than ever to protect yourself at every step of the process. Read these guidelines to make sure you’re staying safe from dispatch to delivery.

Secure Your Account*

Set up User Management to give each person in your organization their own log in, and avoid the risks of sharing account details.
Assign each person a role, and decide who can see sensitive business information.
Multi-factor authentication is automatically enabled. Set up your phone number as the verification method.
Owners and admins should review the user history regularly to monitor unexpected changes.

Verify Your Carrier Partners

Navigate to the carrier’s Central Dispatch profile to check their FMCSA details and view available insurance documents.
Contact the insurance provider and ask to be added as a certificate holder, and conduct your own insurance validation outside of Central Dispatch.
Review each carrier’s Transactional Ratings to get an idea of their performance history and see if they’re right for you.

Communicate In-Platform

Use our dispatch system to assign vehicles and reduce the risk of scams and create a digital paper trail for added peace of mind.
Encourage carriers to assign each load to a specific driver, so you can easily verify driver identity at pickup.

View Real-Time Tracking

Real-time tracking lets carriers send you location and delivery updates to your device, giving you more visibility and peace of mind.
Request your carriers use the Central Dispatch carrier mobile app and enable real-time tracking.

Confirm ID At Pick-Up

Make sure your pick-up agents review the dispatch sheet to confirm the driver’s name and company.
Check their MC#, driver’s license, and make confirmation calls with all parties in case of discrepancies.
Rate and review your carrier partner after delivery is complete to help other shippers make informed partnering decisions.

Trust Our Team

Our Marketplace Integrity team is constantly evolving our vetting processes and enhancing integrity across the transportation lifecycle.
We’re partnering with other industry leaders to lobby Congress, advocating for stronger protections against automotive fraud and encouraging action and accountability from the FMCSA.

Learn more about staying safe while transporting vehicles at centraldispatch.com/secure

*While Central Dispatch is here to support you with best practices to keep your account secure, you are responsible for any conduct that occurs on your account.

For shipper best practices, access our shipper security guide here.

Together, we can make the logistics industry safer

With fraud on the rise in our industry, protecting your cargo and your business has never been more important. But everyone has a role to play – while we’ve taken major steps to secure our marketplace, it’s important that you also take steps to protect yourself.

Be sure to read our best practices for securing your account and every step of your transaction from dispatch to delivery, so you can use Central Dispatch with maximum confidence and security.

Secure Your Account

Sharing your sign-in details with others, even people who work for you, can expose you to fraud and unauthorized access. So, we highly recommend setting up User Management as soon as you open your account with us.

This gives contractors, employees, or people outside your organization their own Central Dispatch login credentials, and minimizes the risks of identity theft when sharing your own account credentials. You can also set guardrails on what business information they can view, helping you avoid potential account security risks.

Plus, with reinforced multi-factor authentication, every Central Dispatch account has an extra layer of protection from unauthorized access. Your phone number is the preferred verification method, and the most secure.

Be sure to be cautious about who you add as a user, and always vet any third party companies or contractors before giving them an account under User Management. Account owners and admins should regularly review the user activity history to monitor for unexpected changes.

While Central Dispatch is here to support you with best practices to keep your account secure, you are responsible for any conduct that occurs on your account.

Learn more about setting up User Management
See how you can secure your account with the User Management security video

Protect Your FMCSA Details

Many cases of fraud start when bad actors steal FMCSA details and pose as legitimate carriers. It’s critical to keep yours secure by using strong passwords and never sharing your log-in info for any platform.

Additionally, you should make sure that your USDOT# and authorization status is up-to-date on Central Dispatch, so shippers can easily verify you and feel confident partnering with you. You can also upload insurance documentation to further stand out as a vetted, trusted carrier.

Learn more about our FMCSA checklist

Know How To Identify Common Scams

One common sign of a fraudulent load is an unusually high listing price. Scammers will lure carriers with high-ball offers in order to carry out a double-brokering scheme, or simply to lower the price once a carrier accepts a load. So, if an offer appears too good to be true, it probably is. Use our Price Check tool to better understand typical market rates and help you assess whether a load offer seems legitimate.

Another clear sign of double-brokering is seeing a different carrier’s name on a Bill of Lading. Make sure to always request documentation ahead of time, so you and your drivers can check through and look for any inconsistencies, and avoid being caught in double brokering.

Be extremely cautious of anyone requesting to change a vehicle’s pick-up location. Scammers will often pose as shippers and offer drivers extra money to reroute vehicles to a new location where they are waiting to steal it. It’s critical to verify that any text, call, email or any type of communication is from the assigned shipper before following any new delivery instructions. Often, it’s best to simply ignore any calls like this, and ask that shippers only give you new instructions within the Central Dispatch platform.

See how you can verify and review shippers with the Transactional Ratings security video

Secure Communications During Transit

Dispatching and communicating through private phone calls, emails, and texts exposes you to fraud, so it’s best to keep as much communication as possible within our platform.

We highly recommend never accepting a dispatch sheet via email. Encourage shippers to dispatch vehicles to you using our fully electronic dispatch system: this greatly reduces the risk of falling victim to fake texts and phone calls, and allows shippers to more easily keep tabs on shipments. You should also assign a driver to each load, so your pickup location can verify the identity of the individual picking up the vehicle.

Additionally, if a shipper requests to change any delivery instructions, it’s important to update the dispatch sheet in Central Dispatch to match those new instructions.

Learn more about our dispatch experience
See how you can secure communications with this security video

We also highly recommend you and your drivers use the Central Dispatch carrier mobile app. This not only allows you to send vehicle location updates directly to shipping partners, but it also enables load tracking – helping you provide greater peace of mind to shippers, build trust, and strengthen your reputation in the marketplace.

Learn more about the carrier app
Learn more about Real-Time Tracking
See how you can use the Central Dispatch carrier app to provide more transparency to shippers in this security video

Review After Dropoff

After the delivery is complete, always rate and review your carrier partner honestly. It’s a great way for the Central Dispatch community to help each other avoid bad actors, reward honest carriers who do good work, and create a more transparent marketplace for everyone. You can also choose to publish your review later at a later date, you can more confidently and honestly rate your partners.

In the Event of Fraud

If you do fall victim to fraud, it’s critical to immediately contact the authorities and file a police report in the jurisdiction of the incident. Provide any information you can to local law enforcement, report the incident to the USDOT’s Inspector General, file a complaint with the FMCSA National Consumer Complaint Database, or contract the Federal Trade Commission.

Contact the Federal Trade Commission: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov

We also encourage you to report the incident to our new Marketplace Integrity Team. These are dedicated transportation experts who are here to take serious action when necessary, and permanently remove known bad actors from our platform.

Contact the Marketplace Integrity Team: CentralDispatchFraudClaims@coxautoinc.com

Steps We’re Taking To Help You Transport Cars Safely

Central Dispatch is making significant strides in addressing this challenge in our industry, and addressing this challenge in our industry so that vehicles can be transported safely and securely.

We are constantly evolving our vetting process alongside the changing market landscape to ensure only legitimate companies gain access to our marketplace, and carriers can more confidently find legitimate loads.

We’ve also formed the Marketplace Integrity Team that is dedicated to combating fraud and helping you stay secure. This team collaborates directly with Cox Security and other enterprise teams to investigate issues, deactivate fraudulent accounts, and proactively protect our customers.

See how the Marketplace Integrity Team is supporting our customers in this security video.

We’re partnering with other industry leaders to lobby Congress, advocating for stronger protections against automotive fraud and encouraging action and accountability from the FMCSA.

We all play a part in building a safer, more secure marketplace for shipping vehicles. Let’s keep working together to protect our industry from fraud and ensure Central Dispatch remains a trusted platform for everyone.

For carrier best practices, access our carrier security guide here.

Together, we can make the logistics industry safer

With fraud on the rise in our industry, shipping vehicles safely has never been more important. To help our shippers meet this challenging moment, we’ve taken major steps to make secure and confident shipping easier. But everyone has a role to play – while we’ve strengthened our tools and processes, it’s important that you also take steps to protect yourself.

So be sure to read our best practices for staying safe and secure from listing to delivery, so you can use Central Dispatch with maximum confidence and security.

Secure Your Account

This gives contractors, employees, or people outside your organization their own Central Dispatch login credentials and minimizes the risks of identity theft when sharing your own account credentials. You can also set guardrails on what business information they can view, helping you avoid potential account security risks.

Plus, with reinforced multi-factor authentication, every Central Dispatch account has an extra layer of protection from unauthorized access. Your mobile phone number is the preferred verification method, and the most secure.

While Central Dispatch is here to support you with best practices to keep your account secure, you are responsible for any conduct that occurs on your account.

Learn more about setting up User Management
See how you can secure your account with the User Management security video

Verify Your Carrier Before Dispatching

Many cases of fraud can be avoided with a few important security checks before dispatching, and all of them can be done easily from the carrier’s Central Dispatch profile.

Check their FMCSA details with our FMCSA checklist, which displays a carrier’s current USDOT#, MC# (if applicable), verification of address, and more. Authorized and reputable carriers will have this information up-to-date.

You can also view any available insurance documents they’ve uploaded to Central Dispatch. Consider contacting the provider and asking to be added as a certificate holder (COI), and conducting your own validation of their insurance outside the Central Dispatch platform.

Learn more about our FMCSA checklist
See how you can find reputable carriers with this security video

Finally, view the carrier’s Transactional Ratings. There you’ll find detailed reviews for transactions they’ve completed on Central Dispatch, and get a clear idea of their behavior and reliability. If any suspicious business practices are called out in ratings, we highly recommend not partnering with them.

Learn more about Transactional Ratings
See how you can verify and review carriers with the Transactional Ratings security video

Secure Communications During Transit

It’s best to keep as much communication as possible within our platform. Dispatching and communicating through private phone calls, emails, and texts exposes you to fraud.

So, be sure to always dispatch vehicles using our fully electronic dispatch system. Assigning vehicles to carriers allows you to easily see carrier data on the dispatch page in order to review key details before assigning to a carrier, and greatly reduces the risk of falling victim to fake texts and phone calls. Additionally, you may encourage your carrier partner to assign each load to a specific driver. This lets you verify the driver’s identity at pickup and gives you better visibility into your shipments.

Learn more about our dispatch experience
See how you can secure communications with security video

You can also request your carriers to use the Central Dispatch carrier mobile app and enable real-time tracking. This allows for maximum visibility and transparency into shipment location and status.

Learn more about Real-Time Tracking
See how you can gain more transparency with the Real-Time Tracking security video

Get Documentation at Pickup

Before a carrier releases a vehicle to you, it’s important to confirm the delivery truck has an MC number that matches the dispatch sheet, and check their driver’s license against the assigned driver on the dispatch sheet (if assigned).

After the delivery is complete, always rate and review your carrier partner honestly. It’s a great way for the Central Dispatch community to help each other avoid bad actors, reward honest carriers who do good work, and create a more transparent marketplace for everyone. You can also choose to publish your review later at a later date, so you can more confidently and honestly rate your partners.

In the Event of Fraud

If you do fall victim to fraud, it’s critical to immediately contact the authorities and file a police report in the jurisdiction of the incident. Provide any information you can to local law enforcement, and also report the incident to the USDOT’s Inspector General, file a complaint with the FMCSA National Consumer Complaint Database, or contact the Federal Trade Commission.

Contact the Federal Trade Commission: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov

We also encourage you to report the incident to our dedicated Marketplace Integrity Team. These are dedicated transportation experts who are here to take feedback from our customers and address security issues.

Contact the Marketplace Integrity Team: CentralDispatchFraudClaims@coxautoinc.com

Steps We’re Taking To Help You Ship Safely

Central Dispatch is making significant strides in addressing this challenge in our industry, and meaningfully reducing the level of fraud.

We are constantly evolving our vetting process alongside the changing market landscape to ensure only legitimate companies gain access to our marketplace, and shippers can more confidently find partners.

See how the Marketplace Integrity Team is supporting our customers in this security video.

We’re partnering with other industry leaders to lobby Congress, advocating for stronger protections against automotive fraud and encouraging action and accountability from the FMCSA.

Transactional ratings and reviews are a vital part of the Central Dispatch platform. They help everyone make better partnering decisions, reward top-performing businesses, and serve as a place to disclose issues that come up during a job. It’s important that you fully understand our ratings system, so you can leave reviews that are clear, fair, and accurate.

Because leaving more accurate ratings doesn’t just help others — it helps you grow your business network and transact with new partners confidently!

About each rating category

Overall: When evaluating your overall experience working with a partner, consider if you would do business with them again. Keep in mind the entire experience of the job, not just the outcome.
Timeliness: Timeliness refers to meeting the contracted timing for pickup, delivery, and any other agreed checkpoints. If it was late, were there external delays that held up the shipment? Was it local or long-distance? How late was it?
Communication: This rating measures how easy it was to get in touch with a partner, and how clear they made their instructions or expectations. Were they easy to work with? Were they quick to respond to questions? Were they professional?
Documentation: Use the documentation rating to evaluate their handling of important paperwork like gate releases and invoicing. Were all documents made easily available? Was the paperwork ever sent late? Was it filled out completely and correctly?

The importance of leaving a written review

While rating across the different categories is important, it sometimes doesn’t tell the full story. Use the “Additional Comments” section to get into more details about working with a partner, and explain why you gave the ratings you did.

This is the place to call out specific things you liked about working with a particular partner, which is extremely helpful for other businesses who might have similar needs or preferences as your own.

So don’t be afraid to get detailed! And if you need to call out things that caused problems on a job, keep your tone and language constructive. All comments are reviewed to make sure our content guidelines are being followed.

Resolving disputes privately

Once posted, Central Dispatch ratings and reviews cannot be changed. So before leaving a negative rating or review, you’ll be prompted to reach out to the other party and resolve any disputes directly with them. Be sure to take advantage of this feature if you think any problems or misunderstandings can be solved privately.

NEW: Control when your review is published, and rate with confidence!

You can now choose when your review is published, giving you the confidence to share your experience. Selecting “Publish Later” means your review will only be publicly posted after your partner has also submitted their rating, or the 14-day review window passes, making it easier to provide honest feedback, and helping foster more transparent partnerships.

What if my review was rejected?

If your review is ever rejected, you can always resubmit within 45 days of the job’s completion. Just visit the “Rejected Ratings” tab on your business profile page to see exactly why your rating was rejected. You’ll also receive an email notification with a full list of our content guidelines and can access them when writing a comment.

Rating canceled transactions

If someone you’ve partnered with cancels a job for any reason, you can still give them one overall rating and write a review. Please note any specific issues related to the cancellation, and partner with more confidence, knowing you’ll be able to hold everyone accountable for every transaction on Central Dispatch.

For a step-by-step video guide on Transactional Ratings, click here!