Carrier Assure founder and CEO Cassandra Gaines has introduced a new industry framework aimed at bringing structure and defensibility to one of the most sensitive decisions in freight logistics: carrier selection.
The framework, called The CAVRA Standard, is a 54-page document built around four core pillars—carrier assessment, verification, risk, and accountability. It was presented during a webinar attended by more than 800 transportation professionals before being formally released on Wednesday.
Gaines said the initiative responds to growing uncertainty in the trucking and brokerage ecosystem, particularly following recent legal developments that have increased scrutiny on how carriers are selected and vetted.
“Since the Supreme Court ruling on the Montgomery case, the industry has been stressed out,” Gaines said in a LinkedIn post. “They all want to know what is a reasonable, defensible standard for selecting a motor carrier.”
Rather than acting as a rigid compliance checklist, the CAVRA Standard is positioned as a practical benchmark that companies can use to evaluate or redesign their own carrier vetting processes.
Beyond authority and insurance checks
A central message of the framework is that carrier selection can no longer rely solely on verifying operating authority and insurance coverage.
Instead, the standard recommends a broader risk-based approach that incorporates safety performance, roadside inspection history, fraud indicators, identity verification, double-brokering risks, shipment suitability, and other operational red flags.
“The question is not whether every decision was perfect,” Gaines wrote in the framework. “The question is whether the decision was reasonable based on the information available at the time.”
The document sets out nine guiding principles for carrier vetting, including continuous monitoring, exception documentation, identity verification processes, and controls designed to mitigate fraud and double brokering risks.
It also outlines minimum requirements such as authority age thresholds, insurance validation, safety rating reviews, and structured escalation procedures for higher-risk carriers. A strong emphasis is placed on documenting decisions and maintaining formal written vetting policies.
A public framework for the industry
Gaines deliberately chose to make the standard publicly accessible rather than positioning it as a commercial product.
Drawing on her experience as a transportation attorney, expert witness, and risk management advisor, she said the industry needed a shared reference point that transcends individual stakeholders.
“I don’t believe that a good transportation provider should be in the dark on how to select a motor carrier in a defensible and reasonable manner,” Gaines said. “An industry standard shouldn’t belong to a big association or shouldn’t belong to the carriers or the brokers or the plaintiff attorneys or defense attorneys.”
The framework also includes a sample carrier vetting policy that companies can adapt internally, though Gaines stresses that legal review and customization are essential depending on operational risk profiles and freight exposure.
Responding to rising freight risk
The release of the CAVRA Standard comes at a time when the logistics industry is facing heightened exposure to cargo theft, fraud schemes, double brokering incidents, and legal disputes linked to carrier selection practices.
Gaines emphasizes that carrier vetting should be treated as a structured risk management discipline rather than an attempt to eliminate uncertainty entirely.
“The goal is not perfection,” she said. “The goal is a reasonable, risk-based, defensible carrier-selection process.”
Ultimately, the framework aims to increase consistency, transparency, and confidence in how transportation companies choose their carrier partners.
“Good brokers deserve a clear standard,” Gaines said.
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