[s-cars] Car transport

Sat Aug 22 12:59:41 PDT 2009

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions.  I decided to go with the company after Bruce's comments.  The company was up front about how much money it would get, and how much money would go to the truck.  For this transport from Louisiana to California, it was $800 total: $150 to broker, $650 to the truck.  $800 to move a car 2300 miles was a pretty good deal, door to door on an open carrier, on short notice in just 3 days.

I debated whether to go with a covered transporter, but after realizing that new cars are moved on open carriers all the time, I went with open.  The car wasn't that dirty when it got here, and looked great after I washed it.

Below is the review I posted at www.transportreviews.com for AAA Discount Auto & Truck Transporters, Inc.

I fully realize that this company is a broker, and does not actually move vehicles itself.  However, brokers do have to find good truckers, and based on this experience, it appears that this company has access to good ones.

I bought a car from my friend in Louisiana.  He was leaving town on Sunday, and I needed to arrange transport by then.  I called late Tuesday afternoon and spoke to Steve Craig.  I explained my short time frame for getting the car picked up.  He assured me that the chances of finding a truck by Sunday were good.  I was skeptical because of all the things I had read about long waits for pickups, but decided to give it a try.  The next morning, I had an email from Steve saying that he had found a truck and that pick up would be on Thursday or Friday.  The car got picked up on Thursday and arrived in California on Sunday, far faster than the 7 to 10 days that I had expected.  The trucker was friendly, soft-spoken, and efficient.  I tipped him a few extra bucks for the speedy transport.

I got several quotes and though AAA Discount was not the cheapest, I was impressed by their attempt to be transparent and educate the consumer.  The company had a good rating at Better Business Bureau and on this site.  The only question I had was the small number of reviews on this site, but I was persuaded by the fact that this company does not charge the customer until a truck has been assigned.  Steve confirmed this, and explained that because he does not get paid until a truck is assigned, he has incentive to find a truck as quickly as possible.  This is key to getting your vehicle moved and not sitting for several weeks.  I had a short time frame and Steve met it.  No extra fees were charged for the short notice.

This shipping was practically door to door (truck tries to get close to your house but has to find a spot big enough to load and unload the car).  Much better than other companies like DAS, which uses terminals and charges extra for door to door.  The problem with terminals is that they usually aren't in the best part of town and your car sits in a big lot with other cars, where it can be damaged, vandalized, or broken into.

----- Original Message ----
From: Bruce Mendel <brucem105 at comcast.net>
To: Theodore Chen <tedebearp at yahoo.com>; s-car-list at audifans.com
Sent: Monday, August 10, 2009 8:07:21 AM
Subject: Re: [s-cars] Car transport

That's all good info, and certainly makes it seem like they are transparent and willing to explain the nuances of what to do and not do.

Transport is simple really. There is one site (you need to be registered dealer or transporter and they check carefully) called www.centraldispatch.com. All the shippers and truckers go there. The truckers post their openings and schedules, and the shippers post their cars and price they are offering for the transport.

Then the site hooks the two sides up showing when trucks will be in the area and allowing the two sides to talk to each other. For example I post a car from PA to IL, offer .60 per mile, and 10 minutes later I get three or four calls from truckers telling me they can take my car and will be in my area within 48 hours for pickup.

It's great because 99.9% of the truckers up there are the actual truckers, not brokers. All a broker is going to do is give you a price, take a cut, and then post the available car with the price they're willing to pay on centraldispatch. Depending on popularity, time of year, etc rates are usually .50 to $1 per loaded mile and you'll get someone to move the car.

But if a broker is greedy, they can charge you $1 per mile, then post the car at .30 per mile. The problem is that they have to wait and see if anyone "bites", and if not then they re-post at a slightly higher rate. This can take weeks while they fish around, which is why sometimes cars take forever to move. For example, if I post my PA to IL load at .30 per mile, my phone will not ring. Then I wait five days, edit it to .45 per mile, and wait again. If not response, I go up to .50 per mile, etc etc.

Bruce
----- Original Message ----- From: "Theodore Chen" <tedebearp at yahoo.com>
To: <s-car-list at audifans.com>
Sent: Monday, August 10, 2009 4:53 AM
Subject: [s-cars] Car transport

> 
> I need to get a car moved from Louisiana to California.  I went to a website (forgot which), entered some information, and got
> quotes from a bunch of companies.  Some were much lower than others,
> which made me nervous.
> 
> I've gotten a quote from Dependable Auto Shippers, which is eBay's recommended auto shipper, for $850.  This quote appears not to include any insurance, and it is terminal to terminal.  Extra cost for pickup or delivery at my specified location  The reviews on epinions.com aren't all that good - 2.5 stars out of 5.  www.transportreviews.com gives them 3 out of 5.
> 
> Is there a reliable source of reviews of auto transport companies?  I went to www.transportreviews.com and it appears to be legit, but I wonder how many of the reviews are shills.  Right now I'm looking at a quote from AA Automovers, which seems to check out using the transportreviews.com, DOT, and BBB websites.  The quote was for $725, and they say it includes 2 forms of auto insurance at no cost.  It's door to door.
> 
> I think a lot of problems arise around timing of pickup and delivery in conjunction with a relocation.  That doesn't apply in this case.  The timing is not critical, though I don't want to have weeks of delay. Getting the car delivered without damage is more important.
> 
> Any thoughts or recommendations?
> 
> Below is an email I got from AAA Discount Auto & Truck Transporters, which quoted $799 door to door with insurance included:
> 
> "Before you consider any company, check to see how long they have been in business. Ask them for their MC# and go to http://li-public.fmcsa.dot.gov/LIVIEW/pkg_carrquery.prc_carrlist. Enter their MC# (our's is 425579) in the field that says DOCKET NUMBER and click SEARCH. On the next screen click on HTML, then at the bottom of the page click on AUTHORITY HISTORY. You will see the date they started business. Is it a company with less than a couple of years experience? If so, they don't have the expertise to properly quote, let alone get your car moved. They typically quote low prices, not knowing what it takes to get your vehicle moved.
> Also check their rating with the Better Business Bureau. Here is the link for our rating http://www.labbb.org/BusinessReport.aspx?CompanyID=13178590
> ...
> Here are a few important  things you need to know about shipping your vehicle.
> 
> 1.  DON'T PAY ANY MONEY UNTIL A TRUCK IS ASSIGNED.  DON'T LET THE BROKER CHARGE A SERVICE CHARGE FOR USING A CREDIT CARD.  DON'T PAY A NON-REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT.  MAKE SURE YOU CAN CANCEL AT ANY TIME WITHOUT PENALTY.
> Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover regulations states to the merchant that they are not permitted to charge a card until the service has been performed.
> We don't charge your credit card for the deposit until a truck commits to picking up your vehicle.
> If the company is charging an additional fee disguised as a service charge for using a credit card, that is also against merchant regulations. THEY CAN'T LEGALLY CHARGE YOU EXTRA FOR USING A CREDIT OR DEBIT CARD.
> 
> 2.  Is the broker offering you different levels of service?  Why are they charging you a higher deposit for each level?  They are keeping the extra money.
> If you want your vehicle to ship faster, make sure the broker is offering ALL of the extra money to the truck.  More money to the truck is the key.
> 
> 3.  Is the broker or trucking company promising you a specific pick up or delivery date?  If they are, be careful.  It is obvious that a specific day or time is impossible to promise due to the nature of the business, i.e., road  conditions, delays with other pickups or deliveries, detours, driver illness or mechanical problems.  If someone is making a promise or guarantee to you, have them put it in writing!
> 
> 4.  The trucking company carries the insurance, not the broker.  All of our truckers are licensed, fully insured and have a ZERO DEDUCTIBLE to the customer.
> 
> 5.  If you get a rate lower than ours, or the rate is the same but the deposit is higher, be careful.  A higher the deposit leaves LESS money for the truck.  A truck must get a certain amount of money per mile.  Some brokers quote prices that are way below the amount a truck needs.  They hope for a trucker that is in need of one last car   to complete his load. Trucks will rarely accept a car that is priced too low.  That means your car just sits.  The key is HOW MUCH IS GOING TO THE TRUCK!  DON'T EVER, PAY THE FULL AMOUNT TO THE BROKER.
> 
> We don't charge your credit card for the deposit until we have dispatched your order.."
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