Carrier profile · USDOT 159376 · MC-210093 · Updated Sep 6, 2026

Merchants Distribution Service Ltd

7 power unitsALTOONA, IA50/100

CARRIER ACTIVEMC-210093 ACTIVE

Observed fleet · trailing 24 mo daily

7Power units

Self-reported · MCS-150

—Trailers seen

None observed · 24 mo

—Avg age (yr)

Not yet decoded

Call dispatch(515) 244-2123 Email dispatchgregd@merchantsdsm.com

Click to see how we scored it

Load decision · FMCSA snapshot · Sep 6, 2026

Limited record

Not enough federal record to assess. Verify authority and insurance directly.

Watch · 2

New entrant, limited track recordRegistered under a year ago with few inspections — limited public safety history to evaluate.Not enough inspection history to rateNo federal roadside inspections in the last 24 months. There is no recent safety record to judge this carrier on — verify authority, insurance and references directly before tendering.

In good standing · 2

Active operating authorityActive for-hire authority is on file with FMCSA.Insurance on fileBIPD (liability) insurance is on file with FMCSA.

USDOT registration

yr registered

Active for-hire

Insurance (BIPD)$1M in force

FMCSA L&I

Vehicle OOS · 24-mo—

No inspections · 24 mo

Crashes · fatal

No activity in window

USDOT registration

yr registered

Active for-hire

Insurance (BIPD)$1M in force

FMCSA L&I

Vehicle OOS · 24-mo—

No inspections · 24 mo

Crashes · fatal

No activity in window

Vektor intelligence · beyond the federal recordProprietary signals computed from VIN-decoded inspections & daily FMCSA snapshots

Fleet typeIdentity

Small fleet

7 power units. Brokers price each fleet type apart.

Fleet age vs peersDecoding

—

Not yet decoded

Identity stabilityNew

0 yr unchanged

Same registration since 2026 — no chameleon / reincarnation signal.

Safety

Roadside inspections, BASICs & crash history

Out-of-service rate· 24-mo cumulative

Vehicle OOS —24-mo cumulative

050%

Driver OOS —24-mo cumulative

030%

Every inspection in the window pooled — 0 vehicle and 0 driver inspections over 24 months.

Roadside inspection history· 24 charted calendar months · vehicle / driver level · any-OOS overlay

No roadside inspections on the FMCSA record in this window

Explore full safety record — inspections, BASICs, crashes

Authority & Insurance

Can they legally + adequately haul your load?

Operating authority· 49 CFR · per type

Operating authority

Common: Active
Contract: Active
Broker: None

Insurance & bonds

BIPD / liability$1,000,000 in force

Cargo filing (census)Recorded per census

Surety bond (census)Not recorded per census

Insurance adequacy· filed BIPD vs the $750K federal floor

$1M in forcegeneral-freight federal minimum

$750K floor

Filed BIPD coverage of $1M meets or exceeds the $750K federal minimum for general freight (49 CFR 387.9). Some commodities (hazmat, larger vehicles) require $1M–$5M — confirm against your load.

Insurance continuity· insurer · policy · lapses

$750K BIPD last filed ’08 · 3 insurers · 0 lapsesContinuous

Travelers’95–’01

American Manufacturers’01–’08

beyond this history

1994200220102018now

Shorter eras are too brief to label at this scale — all 3 insurers are named in the list below.

BIPD in force — $1,000,000 · HARTFORD FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY · since Jan 2008

All 3 insurer eras · dates, limits, renewals

Insurer	Period	Limit	Renewals
AMERICAN MANUFACTURERS MUTUAL INSURANCE CO.	May 2001 → May 2008	$750K	2
TRAVELERS INDEMNITY COMPANY	Mar 1995 → Jul 2001	$750K	1
CONTINENTAL WESTERN INSURANCE CO.	May 1994 → Apr 1995	$750K	1

Explore full authority & insurance record

Equipment

VIN-decoded · NHTSA vPIC

Capacity· power units = haulable capacity; trailers are towed

Registered power units (MCS-150): 7
Observed power (24 mo): —
Trailers (towed): —

Capacity is power units only — trailers are towed equipment and are never summed into a fleet-size figure.

Explore full fleet — VIN roster, equipment mix, age distribution

Operations & Lanes

Revealed by inspection density · 24 mo

Inspection density by state· each tile = a state · shade = inspections, last 24 mo

Home base

ALTOONA, IA

1420 11TH AVE NE

Density

fewermore

Shade = roadside inspections, last 24 mo.

See the full operating map — state density, top lanes

Network & Fraud

Affiliated entities & reincarnation signals · for review, not a verdict

No shared-identity links detected — no reincarnation flag, shared trucks, registration domain, or officer overlap with other carriers.

Explore the carrier network & VIN cross-links

Identity & Federal

FMCSA census + L&I dossier

Location

Physical address: 1420 11TH AVE NE, ALTOONA, IA, 50009-1621
Mailing address: PO BOX 555, ALTOONA, IA, 50009-0555
Operation: Interstate

Contact

Phone: (515) 244-2123
Fax: (515) 967-2561
Email: gregd@merchantsdsm.com
Web domain: merchantsdsm.com

Registration

Officers: Jeff Dickinson · Greg A. Dickinson
USDOT / docket: 159376 · MC-210093
First registered: May 16, 2026
Last MCS-150: May 12, 2025 · 224,000 mi (2024)
FMCSA safety rating: Not rated
D-U-N-S: —

Fleet (self-reported · MCS-150)

Power units

Drivers

CDL drivers

224,000

Annual mileage

Open the full identity & federal record

Federal activity

Daily-captured FMCSA licensing & insurance changes — monitored by Vektor

Federal record activity· monitored daily by Vektor

No licensing or insurance changes captured since Vektor began monitoring this carrier (June 2026). Quiet is usually good.

Open the full federal-record activity feed

Reviews

Verified broker, shipper & driver reviews — moderated

Performance ratings only — never the Vektor risk score

No verified reviews yet

Be the first broker or shipper to rate MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD. Reviews cover performance only — on-time delivery, payment speed, communication — and never affect the Vektor risk score.

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Verification summaryAuthority, insurance, safety and identity facts for MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD.

MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD (USDOT 159376) is unrated by Vektor because the carrier's FMCSA record does not contain enough evidence for a safety score as of Sep 6, 2026.

The carrier holds active common and contract for-hire operating authority per FMCSA L&I as of Sep 6, 2026.

It has an active BIPD insurance filing with a $1,000,000 limit in force from HARTFORD FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY effective Jan 1, 2008 in FMCSA L&I's current snapshot as of Sep 6, 2026.

The carrier received 0 roadside inspections in the last 24 months — 0 vehicle-level and 0 driver-level, according to FMCSA roadside-inspection data refreshed Sep 6, 2026.

The carrier has 0 reportable crashes in the last 24 months and 0 fatal crashes across the full FMCSA crash record available as of Sep 6, 2026.

It reports 7 power units and 7 drivers in its most recent MCS-150 filing dated May 12, 2025.

It has no FMCSA-assigned safety rating in the federal record refreshed Sep 6, 2026.

Frequently asked

What is MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD's USDOT number?

MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD's USDOT number is 159376, and its motor carrier number is MC-210093.

Is MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD authorized to operate?

As of Sep 6, 2026, MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD is active in the FMCSA register with common, contract, broker operating authority on file.

What is MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD's safety record?

MERCHANTS DISTRIBUTION SERVICE LTD has a — vehicle out-of-service rate across 1 roadside inspections, with 0 reportable crashes in the last 24 months, and is not currently rated by FMCSA. Vektor does not assign this carrier a safety score: No federal roadside inspections in the last 24 months. There is no recent safety record to judge this carrier on — verify authority, insurance and references directly before tendering.