Moving or transporting your vehicle requires careful planning.  There are a lot of car transport companies that claim to move cars from one place to another.  It is extremely important to find a reputable auto transport company.  Remember:  Every company is probably going to claim to be reputable.  You need to be able to spot the disreputable companies and be wary of bad car transporters.  How do you safely transport your car?

a.    Do research online.

b.    Call several companies.

c.    Compare prices.  Be aware that extremely low quotes are the first indicator of a disreputable company trying to lure you in with lies and then considerably raising pricing later.

2.    Ask around for referrals from past customers.  If you cannot find anyone to give you a referral, check out Transport Reviews.com.  This is a website where customers can put a review on a company they used.  Search the name of the company you are interested in and check out what their past customers have to say about them.

3.    Contact the Better Business Bureau.  They keep records of complaints made against companies.

4.    Verifying insurance coverage on a company you are interested in using is extremely important.  Not only do you need to be sure their insurance is current, you also need to verify that the company is authorized to work in the states your transport is going through.  If they aren’t, it can affect insurance coverage, if something happens to your vehicle during transport.  It also signifies that the company is not honest, if they say they can transport through states knowing their insurance does not cover those states.

5.    You also need to verify that the transport company is current on licensing.  They should be in good standing with the FMCSA and have a DOT number and good ratings with Central Dispatch.

6.    Carrier versus Broker:  Using a broker is always the best way to go, whether you are planning a state to state auto transport, a local car transport, or overseas vehicle transport.  They have everything at their fingertips to check out the insurance, licensing, FMCSA, and DOT numbers of the carriers.  The company’s ratings with Central Dispatch are extremely important.  A broker can see if there are negative ratings given to the company and what they were for.  Obviously, if negatives had to do with late deliveries, cancellations, or no shows, they should never be considered for any transport no matter how few miles the transport is for.  Checking status on Central Dispatch before using a Carrier will let the broker know whether, in the past, if the carrier had an accident or damage occurred to a customer’s vehicle, and how and if the carrier responded to help resolve the problem.   Brokers have experience handling the transporting of not only cars, but transporting trucks, transporting heavy equipment, and transporting motorcycles.  Using this experience, brokers are knowledgeable of every aspect of your transporting needs.