01Scope and draft status
These are proposed business-to-business motor carrier terms for shipments expressly accepted by the legal HOWL entity identified in the booking. This preview is not an effective tariff or executed transportation contract. The final legal entity, contact details, effective date and jurisdiction schedule must be completed and approved before operational use.
02Contracting parties and service roles
The written booking must identify the shipper or customer, the actual motor carrier, any intermediary and the party responsible for freight charges. HOWL acts as a carrier only when it accepts that role in writing. A service listed on this website is not evidence that HOWL owns that equipment, holds a particular authority or has accepted the shipment. Separate brokerage arrangements are addressed in the service-role terms below.
03Acceptance and document order
A request for a quote is an invitation to discuss service, not a booking. Incorporate the approved version of these terms into the written contract before acceptance and retain the version agreed. Mandatory law controls. Subject to that law, an executed negotiated agreement controls its subject matter, followed by an accepted shipment-specific confirmation, properly incorporated terms and applicable bill-of-lading conditions. A driver’s operational signature does not alone authorize new commercial terms or a waiver of legal rights.
04Authority and lawful operations
Each party must maintain the registrations and qualifications required for its actual role and route. Service is conditional on appropriate operating authority, equipment, qualified personnel and lawful performance. No instruction may require overloading, unlawful speed, fatigue, falsified records or a breach of hours-of-service, securement, dangerous goods or border requirements. HOWL may decline or suspend unsafe or unlawful work and must communicate the issue and available alternatives.
05Accurate shipment information
The customer must disclose commodity, quantity, gross weight, dimensions, value, packaging, handling restrictions, delivery access, temperature needs, dangerous goods and any unusual characteristics before a quote is accepted. Changes may require repricing or revised equipment, subject to agreement. Responsibility for additional costs or loss caused by inaccurate information follows the contract, causation and applicable law; it is not transferred automatically regardless of fault.
06Packaging, loading and securement
The shipping party must tender cargo in suitable packaging and condition for the agreed journey, with accurate markings and accessible documents. Written instructions must allocate loading, count, blocking, bracing, securement and unloading responsibilities. Neither shipper loading nor a sealed trailer removes the carrier’s non-delegable safety obligations. The carrier may record observable exceptions and request correction before departure.
07Bills of lading, seals and custody
Use an accurate bill of lading identifying the parties, goods, origin, destination and agreed special instructions. Document trailer and seal numbers, custody transfers, count where observable, and exceptions at pickup and delivery. A clean receipt is evidence subject to applicable law, not an automatic waiver of concealed-damage rights. A bill of lading or declared value entry does not by itself create cargo insurance.
08Equipment and site access
Equipment type and any special features must be confirmed for the shipment. The customer must disclose site hazards, restricted roads, dock limitations, lifting equipment needs and safe access arrangements. Equipment substitutions or material changes require appropriate communication and approval. Trailer custody, damage, cleaning, detention and return obligations require written terms where customer equipment or dropped trailers are used.
09Scheduling and delivery commitments
Pickup and delivery times are estimates unless a specific service commitment and remedy are expressly agreed in writing. Border inspections, weather, congestion, road restrictions and shipper or consignee delays may affect the plan. The carrier must communicate material exceptions reasonably promptly and take reasonable mitigation steps. An appointment is not permission to breach safety rules.
10Rates, currency and additional services
The accepted quotation must identify currency, base freight, fuel treatment, taxes, applicable accessorials, free time, cancellation conditions and expiry. No universal detention, layover, storage, TONU, tarp or permit rate is created by this draft. Additional services require written authorization where practical; urgent lawful steps to protect people or cargo must be documented and communicated. Reasonable recovery of such costs remains subject to the contract and law.
11Payment and invoice disputes
The booking or credit agreement must specify the paying party, payment due date and required invoice documents. Notify HOWL promptly of a disputed item with supporting details and pay undisputed amounts when due, subject to applicable rights. Interest, collection costs, set-off restrictions or credit suspension apply only if lawfully agreed; this website supplies no default interest rate. Changed bank instructions must be independently verified.
12Carrier cargo liability
Liability for loss, damage or delay is determined by the governing transportation law and enforceable shipment contract. This draft does not impose a single Canada–U.S. per-pound cap or eliminate mandatory carrier obligations. Any released value, declared-value option or other limitation must satisfy the law governing that shipment and be properly agreed before tender. Merely publishing a limitation here does not establish an enforceable limitation.
13Valuation and higher-value freight
Disclose the actual value and any high-value or sensitive characteristics before booking. Request available valuation options and pricing in writing. A higher declared value is effective only when lawfully accepted under the applicable regime and documented in the required manner. If the necessary terms or coverage cannot be agreed, do not tender the cargo. A commercial invoice value is not a promise of recovery in that amount.
14Insurance and allocation of risk
Carrier liability and cargo insurance are different. A certificate of insurance does not amend a policy, remove exclusions or guarantee payment of a claim. No all-risk cargo policy or specific limit is promised by this website. Shippers should assess separate cargo insurance for their interests. Confirm accepted insurance requirements, deductibles, exclusions and applicable valuation arrangements before shipment.
15Claims and evidence
Notify the appropriate carrier promptly after discovering a problem, preserve cargo and packaging when safe, and provide reasonable inspection access. Submit a written claim identifying the shipment, the basis of liability and a specified or determinable amount, with available supporting documents. Operational notification, a damage notation or a form acknowledgement does not necessarily constitute a legally sufficient claim. Follow the separate claims procedure and the deadlines governing the shipment.
16Jurisdiction-specific time limits
Do not assume one claim deadline applies to every route. Where 49 U.S.C. §14706 applies, a contract cannot shorten the claim-filing period below nine months or the civil-action period below two years from the carrier’s written disallowance, as provided by that statute. Canadian requirements and other applicable regimes must be checked for the actual shipment. No deadline in these draft materials shortens a mandatory right.
17Delay, consequential loss and agreed remedies
To the extent enforceable, a final agreement may exclude indirect or consequential loss, lost profit, lost market and contractual penalties not expressly assumed. Such an exclusion does not override mandatory cargo liability, an enforceable specific undertaking or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded. Special exposure, production-line risk or service remedies must be disclosed and negotiated before booking.
18Indemnities and fault allocation
Subject to applicable anti-indemnity and other mandatory laws, a final agreement may require each party to indemnify the other for third-party claims to the extent caused by its negligence, unlawful conduct or material breach. No party is required by this draft to indemnify another for that other party’s own negligence where prohibited. Defence control, notice, cooperation and settlement consent should be addressed in the signed agreement.
19Rejected, undeliverable or abandoned cargo
If delivery cannot be completed, request lawful instructions and take reasonable steps to protect the cargo. Storage, redelivery, return or disposal requires lawful authority, suitable notice and compliance with applicable procedures. No blanket right to sell, destroy or hold cargo for unrelated debt is created here. Any lien must exist under applicable law or an enforceable agreement and be exercised lawfully.
20Subcontracting and brokerage referrals
Do not transfer an accepted shipment to another provider contrary to the contract or applicable law. Any permitted subcontracting must preserve required authority, custody controls and customer instructions. Freight arranged through a brokerage must identify the broker and actual carrier in the applicable documents. A referral to a separately identified broker does not automatically make that entity the carrier or release HOWL from obligations it has already undertaken.
21Cross-border responsibilities
The customer must identify the importer, exporter and licensed customs broker where required and supply complete, accurate trade documents in time. Duties, taxes, admissibility and classification responsibilities must be allocated in writing. Transportation service does not make HOWL an importer of record or licensed customs broker. Border release or examination times cannot be guaranteed.
22Specialized and regulated freight
Reefer, oversize, heavy haul, dangerous goods, bulk, vehicle and other specialist work requires shipment-specific acceptance. Required equipment, training, permits, product compatibility, escorts and handling plans must be confirmed. No listing on the services page constitutes unconditional acceptance. The specialist service terms supplement the accepted contract only when incorporated.
23Events beyond reasonable control
Where enforceable and causally relevant, events outside reasonable control may excuse affected performance for their duration. The affected party must notify the other and use reasonable mitigation efforts. Force majeure is not a blanket exemption for ordinary operational negligence and does not automatically eliminate payment for completed work or mandatory cargo duties. Document any resulting alternative plan and cost allocation.
24Confidentiality, records and electronic instructions
Use shipment and business information only for legitimate performance, legal obligations and agreed purposes. Apply appropriate access controls and retain records as required. Verify material payment, consignee and routing changes through an established contact. Electronic records may evidence agreement where legally valid; preserve the actual terms and identity of the person accepting. A unilateral website update does not amend an existing contract.
25Disputes, notices and general provisions
The final agreement must specify the correct contracting entity, governing law, permitted forum and notice details after legal review. This draft selects no arbitrary province, state, arbitration forum or shortened limitation period. Attempt good-faith resolution without delaying legal deadlines. Any severability, waiver, assignment, termination or survival clause must be consistent with applicable law. Statutory rights that cannot be waived remain intact.