How Does the Vehicle Shipping Process Operate?

If you are new to the whole process of vehicle shipping, you can lose your cool and be stressed and can even lose money on the line. Your vehicle can be a precious heirloom or even if it’s not, you have put a lot of investment in it and you want it safe in any circumstance. Your search can become a lot easier if you know how the auto transport company works.

Step – 1: Find Your Broker and Carrier

Auto transportation is a vehicle shipping industry that has legitimate authorities to regulate their services. Every legitimate company would meet the credentials of the authority and get a registration and license number. The step to avoid any shady service provider is to look for these numbers. Read customer reviews and explore the services of the selected companies. Then compare all the factors to choose the most suitable among them.

For instance, if you are shipping a vehicle from Texas to Florida you would like to find a broker company like Ship a Car, Inc. who has a good reputation in the industry for over a decade. They simplify your transport experience in four steps – get your instant quote, book the shipment, assign carrier, and pick up & delivery. You would get 5-star rated service with professional and responsive transport coordinators. They provide their services throughout the US continent.

Step – 2: Decide the Terms of the Agreement

You have to declare your requirement to the broker, like – the time of shipment, the type and number of the vehicle, how fast you want the delivery, budget and route. The broker then tries to find a carrier that would agree to your terms. The broker would give you many options of carrier until you agree.

Then you have to select the type of transport vehicle and delivery option convenient to you. Once you agree to all the terms and conditions the broker would draft the agreement papers.

Step – 3: Cost of Shipping

The estimate of the shipping cost may vary for different companies. The final cost is subject to many factors like mileage, fuel consumption, shipping and delivery time and place.

Step – 4: Documents and Insurance

You might have to show some documents like vehicle registration paper, ownership proof, identity proof and insurance certificate if it covers accidental shipping damages. Talk to the broker for details of the required documents.

Step -5: Prepare Your Vehicle for Pick-Up

All the auto transport company mentions certain conditions for preparing vehicles before the pick-up. Clearing out the insides and repairing the car is a must. You cannot carry luggage in the hauled car. There is a weight limit.

Step – 6: Delivery

The convenient delivery option is door-to-door service. You don’t have to worry about your car staying in the terminal without much attention. However, when you hardly have time to receive your car you can only drop it at a terminal and pick it up from the delivered terminal.

Sometimes you can also get the option to have a combination of both these offer – door-to-terminal or terminal-to-door. Also, remember that unpredictable factors like accidents or weather can affect the time of delivery.