Short answer
An EDI 214 is the X12 Transportation Carrier Shipment Status Message. Carriers and brokers send it to shippers to report where a load stands: arrived at pickup, departed, en route, arrived at delivery, unloaded or delayed. Each update carries a status code, a reason code, date, time, location and the shipment’s reference numbers.
Why the 214 matters
X12 describes the 214 as a transaction set that “can be used by a transportation carrier to provide shippers, consignees, and their agents with the status of shipments” (X12 transaction set list). For an EDI-connected shipper, the 214 stands in for the status email and many of the phone calls.
Shippers that tender by EDI 204 commonly expect 214s back and may score providers on whether updates arrive and whether they’re on time. A broker that hauls the load well but sends late or missing 214s can still look bad on that scorecard.
In brokered freight, the carrier usually isn’t sending EDI to the broker. The broker builds 214s from tracking data and check calls, then transmits them to the shipper.
What’s inside a 214
From the 004010 segment reference:
- B10: shipment identifiers, such as the carrier’s reference and the shipper’s shipment ID
- L11: other reference numbers, such as PO or BOL
- LX: starts a status detail loop
- AT7: the status, the reason for it, the date and time, and any appointment
- MS1: location by city and state or coordinates
- MS2: equipment owner and number
Common AT7 shipment status codes
Codes and names from the X12 004010 shipment status code list. Trading partners choose which ones they accept.
| Code | X12 description | When a broker sends it |
|---|---|---|
| X3 | Arrived at Pick-up Location | Driver checks in at the shipper |
| AF | Carrier Departed Pick-up Location with Shipment | Truck leaves loaded |
| X6 | En Route to Delivery Location | In-transit location update |
| AG | Estimated Delivery | ETA update |
| SD | Shipment Delayed | A delay that threatens the appointment |
| X1 | Arrived at Delivery Location | Driver checks in at the receiver |
| D1 | Completed Unloading at Delivery Location | Freight is off the truck |
| CD | Carrier Departed Delivery Location | Truck leaves the receiver |
Source: Stedi X12 004010 reference for element 1650. Reason codes come from element 1651, where NS means Normal Status.
Example and common mistakes
Example (illustrative): a load arrives at the shipper at 6:52 AM and the broker sends X3 with reason code NS. It departs at 8:40 AM (AF). A midday update sends X6 with a Little Rock, AR location. Weather slows the truck overnight, so the broker sends SD with reason code AO, Weather or Natural Disaster Related, and a new AG estimate. The truck arrives at 11:05 AM (X1) and finishes unloading at 12:20 PM (D1).
Common mistakes
- Batch sending once a day. A status that arrives six hours after the event can score as late.
- Wrong time zone. AT7 carries a time code. A pickup in Chicago reported in Eastern time looks an hour late.
- Delays with no reason code. Shippers often need a reason to excuse a late load.
- Sending a delivery status before the POD is in hand. If the receiver later refuses freight, you’ve reported a delivery that didn’t close.
FreightVero doesn’t send 214s today, since EDI is planned, not built. The status data a 214 draws on, truck position, ETA and arrival at the stop, is what live tracking records on each load. See our EDI guide for freight brokers.