Botrunners are smugglers and traders of illegal black-market robot parts. They can get you anything you want -- if you've got the credits.
In Free Space, some botrunners have actually set up shops. In Confederate space, botrunners are hunted with extreme prejudice.
Many botrunners hire mercs for protection and often travel in small fleets. Some super paranoid runners have scouts that ensure their paths are clear ahead of time.
Botrunners maintain good relations with scavs are these are excellent sources of very cheap parts. The only runners who scav for themselves are commonly just starting and for whom every credit in their pocket affects their bottom line. However, botrunners will always tell authorities that they are just scavs if questioned because the penalty for being a scav is just a fine. Botrunners face incarceration. Because of this, scavving botrunners will often salvage more than just bot parts if they have the room to spare as it helps their charade.