AI image
OTSL does not buy loads on freight exchanges and does not hand them to whoever quotes the lowest rate first. We work with our own pool of vetted carriers. For you as a haulier this means three things: vetting before the first load (licence, carrier liability insurance known in Poland as OCP, company history, vehicle and driver matching the order), orders from a lead forwarder with delivery notification, ferry booking and customs documents ready, and fixed communication channels instead of phone numbers "for one trip". Instead of bidding and phoning for slots you receive a complete data set.
How does a partner order differ from an exchange load?
On an exchange the load goes to whoever clicks fastest and drops the rate lowest. You know the principal by a phone number and meet the consignee at the gate. At OTSL the order comes from a lead forwarder who knows the customer, has checked the unloading conditions and knows who on the other side is to receive the goods. Notification is done, the ferry is booked and on the UK lane the GMR in the GVMS system is prepared by the OTSL office. Your driver gets data, not the task "find out on site".
The second difference is the durability of the relationship. Communication with a partner runs through fixed channels: agreed numbers, agreed e-mail addresses, the same forwarder. Documentation of every order is archived in case of a dispute, so a year later it is possible to reconstruct who agreed what. On an exchange, after the deal closes, what remains is a number that may no longer answer next week.
Why does OTSL vet a haulier before the first load?
Because the most common fraud pattern on exchanges is impersonating an existing, honest company: someone takes a real carrier's details, applies for the load and the goods disappear. That is why OTSL checks the OCP policy at source, with the insurer or agent rather than from a forwarded scan, and confirms the driver's identity when the vehicle arrives. Vetting covers the licence and permits, the OCP policy (validity, sum insured, territorial scope, exclusions, deductibles), company history and consistency of register data, vehicle and driver matching the order, and establishing who actually performs the carriage.
For an honest haulier this is a one-off cost of a few documents and a conversation. In return you get a principal who knows whom it entrusts the load to and who will not drop you at the first problem en route. Payment terms, the required OCP sum insured and the list of contract documents are not published; the owner of OTSL sets them and discusses them with you after your application.
How to become an OTSL partner carrier step by step
- Application. Fill in the contact form with the subject "Carrier cooperation". State where your base is, what vehicles you run, which destinations you serve and what OCP policy you hold.
- Conversation and documents. An OTSL forwarder calls, discusses destinations and asks for documents: licence with certified copies, OCP policy with its general terms, company registration documents, vehicle list.
- Verification at source. OTSL confirms the policy with the insurer or agent, compares register data with what you provided and checks company history.
- Agreeing the terms. Settlement terms and the scope of runs are set by the owner of OTSL; we do not publish them because they are agreed individually.
- First order. You receive the full data set: addresses, time windows, notification, ferry booking and, for GB, the GMR. When the vehicle arrives OTSL compares vehicle and driver details with the order.
- Ongoing cooperation. Further orders come through the same channel, from the same forwarder, with documents of every run archived.
Definitions
- Freight exchange: an online platform where principals post loads and hauliers post free vehicles and bid on rates.
- Partner carrier: a haulier from OTSL's fixed pool that has passed vetting and receives orders from a lead forwarder rather than from open bidding.
- OCP (carrier liability insurance): the Polish policy covering damage to goods in transit; OTSL checks its validity, sum insured, territorial scope, exclusions and deductibles at source.
- Verification at source: confirming a document with its issuer (insurer, agent, register) rather than from a scan sent by the haulier.
- GMR (Goods Movement Reference): the reference from the UK Goods Vehicle Movement Service (GVMS) without which a truck cannot enter the port on the GB lane; prepared by the OTSL office.
- Lead forwarder: the one person at OTSL who runs the order from quote, through vehicle and documents, to proof of delivery.
Checklist for a haulier moving from the exchange to the partner model
- Community licence with certified copies for every vehicle that will run OTSL jobs.
- OCP policy with its general terms, territorial scope covering the destinations you apply for.
- Company register data, phone numbers and e-mail addresses consistent with public registers.
- List of vehicles and drivers who actually perform the carriage; no undisclosed onward subcontracting.
- Readiness to work through the OTSL forwarder, without direct contact with the end customer.
- Application via the contact form with the subject "Carrier cooperation", not via an offer on an exchange.
When is the partner model not for you?
The partner model does not apply to a haulier looking for a one-off load for an empty truck tomorrow. OTSL has no open list of "loads to take" and no bidding, so there is nothing to click. Cooperation will not start either unless you pass vetting: a missing certified copy of the licence, an OCP policy that excludes the destination or contact details inconsistent with the register stop the process before the first order. The scope of runs and settlement terms depend on what is agreed with the owner of OTSL and differ for a tail-lift rigid, a reefer and a curtainsider on the GB lane. Vetting lowers the risk for both sides but does not remove it; OTSL does not run investigations or debt recovery after a theft.
The OTSL role
OTSL is the lead forwarder: it vets the haulier, plans the run, prepares notification, ferry booking and customs documents, and is answerable to the customer for the job. How we check carriers is described on the service page vetted carriers and OCP checks. Why we do not use exchanges at all is explained in why we do not buy loads on exchanges, and the most common fraud pattern in fake carrier from a freight exchange. You send your application via the contact form with the subject "Carrier cooperation".
