The car shipping industry is heavily deregulated which in some respects are good for consumers because it leaves a very open platform for competition keeping the price low. However this also opens the door for a different problem, unethical business owners who prey on the ignorance of consumers who are trying to arrange their car shipping and fail to do the research of each individual company. Below are a few tips
we feel is important for you to understand before booking your transport with any company so you can make a proper comparison and make an educated decision.
How many years have they been in business?
There are several reasons this is important to know. First, there are a lot of car shipping scams done by a small number of people who continually change their company name year after year so they have a “fresh start” and can avoid all the complaints from prior consumers. We recommend if they haven’t been in business for at least 2 years, be leery, but it is not the only point to judge on. Every company has to start from somewhere, so it can not be the only thing to consider.
How did they treat past customers?
So you found a company that has been around for several years, but how do they treat other customers? In the car shipping industry, things can go wrong, delays from other customers, weather or mechanical breakdowns. These things are simply part of the business, however if companies are honest with their customers this is generally appreciated. Having a couple of complaints is bound to happen, but there is a point where it should be clear it is “out of control.” There are many review sites on the internet, sadly a lot of these are owned by transport companies themselves and manipulated by companies writing reviews about themselves and how great they are under the guise of being a happy consumer. We recommend reviewing the number of complaints on the Better Business Bureau website. While there are no recommendations here, you will be able to see how many legitimately unhappy customers there are.
How do they expect payment?
If they want to charge your deposit upfront to “reserve space on the truck” be concerned. This is a car shipping scam used by some companies to trap consumers by having them sign a contract that makes it so if you want to cancel they keep your deposit. Often they quote at such a low price you feel it would be silly not to book and pay a small deposit, but these companies survive on these deposits and rarely move the cars which is what the deposit was paid for. Generally it is safer to pay a deposit after the car is loaded and the balance to the driver when it is delivered.
Hire a reputable car shipping company and you may pay more, but at least your move will be headache free.
Car Shipping Tips
