How to Choose an Auto Transport Company Without Getting Burned
The short version: verify the company’s authority with the FMCSA before you pay anything, understand whether you are hiring a broker or a carrier, get the quote in writing with the terms that could change it spelled out, and read the insurance certificate rather than trusting the phrase “fully insured.” Those four steps eliminate most of the ways an auto transport booking goes wrong.
Broker or Carrier: Know Which One You Are Talking To
Most companies advertising car shipping are brokers rather than carriers, and the distinction decides who you deal with after booking. We cover it properly in carrier versus broker; the short version is that a carrier owns the truck and a broker finds you one.
What matters is that you know which you have hired, because it determines who to call when something changes. With a broker, the broker manages the booking and the carrier drives the truck, so ask who your point of contact is once the vehicle is assigned. A company that gets cagey when you ask whether it is a broker or a carrier has told you something useful.
Verify the Company Before You Pay
Every legitimate auto transport broker and carrier holds a USDOT number and an MC number issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Both are public. Ask for the number, then look it up on the FMCSA’s SAFER system and check three things:
- Authority status is ACTIVE, not pending, revoked or inactive.
- The authority type matches what they told you: broker authority for a broker, common or contract carrier for a carrier.
- Insurance is on file and current. Brokers must maintain a $75,000 surety bond; carriers file liability and cargo coverage.
This check takes two minutes and rules out the operators who cause the worst outcomes. Do it before any deposit changes hands, not after.
Why Quotes Change, and Which Changes Are Legitimate
A quote is a price to move a specific vehicle on a specific route in a specific window. Some things genuinely change that price, and some companies exploit the ambiguity. Knowing the difference lets you push back on the second without unfairly suspecting the first.
Quote Changes: Fair vs Not
That second-to-last row is the honest version of a common industry problem. If a broker quotes below market to win the booking, no carrier accepts the load, and the price gets revised upward days later, that is a bidding practice rather than a scam, but it costs you time. The defense is to ask at quote time what the typical carrier-accepted rate is on your lane, and to be suspicious of a quote well below the others rather than delighted by it.
Read the Insurance, Do Not Just Hear the Word
“Fully insured” is marketing language. Ask for the certificate of insurance for the carrier assigned to your vehicle, and read two numbers: the cargo coverage limit and the deductible. Cargo limits commonly run $100,000 to $250,000 for the whole load, which is seven to ten cars. If your vehicle is worth more than a proportional share of that, you need supplemental coverage.
Also confirm what your own auto policy does during transport. Many policies continue comprehensive coverage while the vehicle is on a carrier, some do not, and knowing which before pickup is far better than finding out during a claim.
Deposits, Payment and What Normal Looks Like
Common practice is a deposit at booking or at carrier assignment, with the balance due on delivery, frequently by cash, certified funds or card depending on the carrier. What should raise an eyebrow is a demand for the full amount up front, pressure to pay by wire transfer or a payment app, or a deposit taken before any carrier has been assigned with no refund terms in writing.
Ask one question: if no carrier picks up my vehicle, what happens to the deposit? A clear answer in writing is the mark of a company that intends to keep its side.
The Bill of Lading Is the Document That Matters
At pickup, the driver completes a condition report and you both sign it. That bill of lading is the legal record of your vehicle’s condition when it entered the carrier’s custody, and at delivery it becomes the record of its condition on arrival. Every damage claim is decided on those two documents.
So photograph every panel, the wheels, the roof and the odometer in daylight before the driver arrives, walk the vehicle with the driver rather than around them, and at delivery inspect before signing. If you find damage, note it on the bill of lading while the driver is present. A signed clean bill of lading is your statement that the car arrived undamaged, and it is very hard to walk back.
Reviews: What Is Worth Reading
Star averages tell you little because satisfied customers rarely post and frustrated ones always do. What is worth reading is the specifics in the negative reviews. Complaints about a delivery arriving a day late are the industry working normally. Complaints about a price rising after booking, calls going unanswered once payment cleared, or damage claims being deflected describe how a company behaves when things go wrong, and that is the actual information you are after.
Check the FMCSA complaint history alongside the review sites, since it is the record companies cannot curate.
Common Questions
How far ahead should I book? One to three weeks for most routes. Longer around the winter snowbird season and the late-summer university moves, when capacity tightens on specific lanes.
Can I put belongings in the car? Many carriers allow up to about 100 pounds in the trunk, below the window line. Get the allowance in writing, because items above it add weight the carrier is not being paid for and are not covered by cargo insurance.
Should I choose the cheapest quote? Not on its own. The lowest quote on a lane is often the one no carrier will accept, which costs you the delay of a repricing. Compare the middle of the range against verified authority and clear terms.
What if my vehicle is damaged in transit? Note it on the bill of lading before signing, photograph it immediately, and file the claim with the carrier’s insurer. The bill of lading and your pickup photos are what decide it.
Get a Quote
Call Ship A Car, Inc. at (866) 821-4555 and ask any of the questions above, or price your move with the instant calculator.
