Back in October, I wrote an article entitled “UCR 2019 Delay” shortly after the delay in UCR filing was announced. When you are an independent carrier with your own authority, the slough of emails never ceases to amaze me, but the fact that so many of these “service firms” get away with pressuring carriers with false information through these emails is appalling! Once some of the advocate groups like OOIDA started sending out emails warning of the delay and those preying on this false information, I had noticed a slow-down of these emails for a brief period of time. As the end of the year approaches though, I have noticed an uptick in the emails once again, this time stating that the fees have been finalized and you can now register to “pre-file”. Once again, do not believe the hype!
Being someone that files his own UCR fees directly through UCR.gov because I simply refuse to pay someone a $100-$200 service fee for what I can do online in 15 minutes, I know for a fact that there is no official word yet and no ability to “pre-file” for the simple reason that it doesn’t exist! This screenshot of the UCR.gov site taken on the posting date of this very article (pictured above), states unarguably that the filing for 2019 is still delayed until further notice. Amazingly the email snippet (pictured below) that was one of many I received this month, tries to sway readers into believing that 2019 is open for filing and even has the “proposed” 2019 fees shown with their added “service fees” shown as approved. Make no mistake that this is a scam to try and collect your hard earned money for their service fee, only to add onto their books before the close of 2018!
Even during the regular open filing season, these emails are almost too many to count and overflow most carriers’ email inboxes. The fact that these email scammers are allowed to provide false information and continually pressure those less-informed carriers out there that fall into their trap is not right! Believe me when I say that taking matters into your own hands when filing your own UCR, IFTA and MCS-150 updates is simple and keeps you in the loop of what is really going on. If you do hire a firm, which I understand some will still do out there, be sure they are reputable and not feeding you a bunch of lies or overcharging you for their services. Beware of the false information that is out there and that these people continue to use to prey on carriers not in the know. More importantly, keep an eye on UCR.gov for the official word on when the new fees are approved and when filing is truly open for the 2019 year!