# Why does my carrier return almost nothing at B/L level but answer properly by container number?

**URL:** <https://community.dockflow.com/t/why-does-my-carrier-return-almost-nothing-at-b-l-level-but-answer-properly-by-container-number/149>\
**Category:** How-to Q&A\
**Tags:** no-tracking-data, area-tracking-data\
**Created:** [November 6, 2026, 3:09pm UTC](https://community.dockflow.com/t/why-does-my-carrier-return-almost-nothing-at-b-l-level-but-answer-properly-by-container-number/149 "2026-11-06T15:09:05Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dockflow](https://community.dockflow.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/d/a9a28c/32.png) [@dockflow](https://community.dockflow.com/u/dockflow)\
**Post date:** [November 6, 2026, 3:09pm UTC](https://community.dockflow.com/t/why-does-my-carrier-return-almost-nothing-at-b-l-level-but-answer-properly-by-container-number/149/1 "2026-11-06T15:09:05Z")

</div>

Some carriers return a full transport plan when you ask by B/L. Others return almost nothing at  
B/L level: no containers, no milestones, sometimes only the port of loading and port of discharge.  
The same carrier will often answer properly when asked by container number instead.

This is a property of the carrier, not of your shipment. It is more common with  
smaller and regional carriers.

**What to do:** add the container numbers to the tradeflow. Where the carrier supports  
tracking by container, tracking starts from there. Note that a container-level answer is sometimes  
limited to the latest milestone rather than the full journey.

**Example**  
A regional carrier shows only a port of loading and port of discharge for a B/L, with no containers or milestones. When the container numbers are added to the tradeflow, tracking starts. The answer may show only the latest milestone, not the full journey.