No upfront payment
No upfront payment is an advertising sentence, not a standard legal term. On 10 November 2026 AmeriFreight and RoadRunner each described a version of it. Find the matching sentence in your contract before you rely on the headline.
No upfront payment means, in an ad, that you do not pay before some later event. The event is the whole question. On 10 November 2026, AmeriFreight's public FAQ said no upfront payment is required while it searches for a carrier, and that a deposit is charged after a carrier is selected and the shipment is booked. The same day, RoadRunner's public FAQ said no deposit is required and payment is due at carrier assignment. Those are not the same promise, and neither is a federal definition.
What to find in the contract
Search the order for deposit, booking fee, and when the balance is due. If the ad says no upfront payment and the contract charges a fee at booking, the contract wins. Ask whether the fee is refundable if no carrier is assigned. Get the answer in writing.
How it differs from a free quote
A quote request can cost nothing. That is not the same as a booked shipment with no deposit. RideShipper does not collect shipping payments. A company that answers your request might. Read its contract, not its headline.