Bill of lading field
What is a SCAC code on a bill of lading?
The SCAC is the carrier's four-letter Standard Carrier Alpha Code, assigned by the National Motor Freight Traffic Association. It identifies the carrier in EDI and in most shippers' systems. Ask your carrier what theirs is.
Why it matters
Anything electronic — an EDI 211 shipment notice, a customer's routing guide, a TMS — keys on the SCAC rather than a company name. Names are ambiguous; the four letters are not.
The mistake that costs money
Guessing it from the carrier's name. A wrong SCAC routes an electronic notice to the wrong carrier or bounces it entirely, and blank is genuinely better than wrong here.
Worth knowing
- Always four letters. Codes ending in U, X or Z are reserved for particular equipment and container traffic.
- It is assigned to the carrier, not to the shipment.
- Your customer's routing guide usually lists the SCAC for every approved carrier.
- Leave it blank rather than guess. Nothing about a domestic LTL pickup fails because this box is empty.