The CAN-SPAM Act sets the rules for commercial email in the United States, and it applies to business-to-business messages too. If you email trucking companies about insurance, dispatch, factoring or anything else you sell, these are the requirements to build into every campaign.
This is a summary for planning purposes. The FTC's CAN-SPAM compliance guide for business is the authoritative source, and it's worth checking with counsel for your specific program.
What CAN-SPAM requires
Accurate sender information
Your "From," "To," "Reply-To" and routing information must be accurate and identify the business sending the message. Don't send from a domain or name designed to look like someone else.
Honest subject lines
The subject line can't mislead the recipient about what's in the message. "Re: your load" on a first-touch sales email is a fast way to lose trust and break the rule.
Identify the message as an ad
The law requires a clear disclosure that the message is an advertisement or solicitation, though it gives you flexibility in how you do that. Plain, honest copy about what you're offering goes a long way.
Include a valid postal address
Every message needs your valid physical postal address: a street address, a post office box or a registered private mailbox.
Offer a clear way to opt out
Tell recipients how to stop receiving your emails, and make it easy: a reply or a single link to a page, without requiring login or payment. Your opt-out mechanism has to work for at least 30 days after you send.
Honor opt-outs within 10 business days
Once someone opts out, stop emailing them within 10 business days. Don't sell or transfer their address except to a company helping you comply.
Watch what others do on your behalf
If an agency or contractor sends email for you, you're both responsible. Penalties are assessed per email and can reach tens of thousands of dollars per violating message.
What CAN-SPAM doesn't require
CAN-SPAM doesn't require prior consent for commercial email. That's why cold B2B email to the business contact a carrier made public is a common practice. Other laws can still apply, for example state laws, the TCPA for calls and texts, and the laws of other countries if you email outside the U.S.
A compliance checklist for trucking outreach
- Send from your real company name and a domain you own.
- Write subject lines that describe the email.
- Say plainly what you're offering.
- Put your postal address in the footer.
- Include a one-step unsubscribe and test it.
- Sync opt-outs into one suppression list across every tool you use.
- Remove opt-outs within 10 business days, and sooner if you can.
- Keep records of where each contact came from.
Good practice beyond the law
Compliance is the floor. Carriers respond better when outreach is narrow, specific and short: a few carriers you picked for a reason, a message that explains the reason, and no more than two or three follow-ups.
TruckerFetch applies removal requests to the contacts it publishes and doesn't send campaigns for customers. Read the acceptable-use policy for how the data can be used, and our guide on how to email trucking companies for message structure.
This article is general information, not legal advice.