Dave_in_Texas
Full Member
You have a couple options in regards to shippers. I just shipped a Bronco from Tucson to just north of Dallas and did a fair amount of research.
1. Auto Shipping Brokers. There seem to be many brokers out there and this is how they work. You contract with a broker and they place your shipping request on some type of national shipping board. Truckers and their companies will look at this board and see if there is anything out there they can load up on to maximize their trips. There are pros and cons to this. The pro is that you have thousands of trucking companies looking at your request (competitive bidding). The cons are that you don't really know who is moving your car (though you can request insurance cards and department of transportation ID numbers of the actual shipper prior to pick-up). You will end up paying the broker a "finder's fee" once your vehicle is loaded on the truck then you usually end up paying the driver of the truck COD (cash upon delivery). Be careful, sometimes the lowest priced broker quote won't be filled on that national shipping board. If they post a load from point A to point B and request an unreasonable rate (too low), then that will be the last to get filled, if it does. Its not always the case, but the more you pay, the faster you get delivery.
2. Actual shipping companies. Another option is to work directly with a shipping company to arrange shipping. You'll find companies with just a handful of trucks then you'll also see huge national shippers with hundreds of trucks. Going this route allows you to know exactly who is moving your car, giving you the chance to make sure they're reputable, but you might not be able to ship it as fast or inexpensively as a broker could.
3. Work one of those "national shipping boards" yourself. There are a couple do it yourself shipping boards that allow you to post a listing that truckers and shipping companies can view and submit bids (ex. www.uship.com). You cut the middle man out (the broker) and have a fair amount of control of who ships your car (ie., you can deny bids). But, you will need to set a fair price that entices a shipper to look at your ad otherwise it won't be filled.
All in all, you have lots of choices and have pros and cons with each. Once you decide on which route to go, you then need to decide if you want to ship it enclosed or on an open carrier...or if you want to pay extra to have it sit on the top or bottom row. The top is good since you don't risk oil or brake fluid being leaked on it from above, but you open yourself up to possible scratches from tree limbs. It is now just a matter of how you want to approach it. I wouldn't be too picky if it is a project car, but if its restored, I'd do lots of homework on the shipper and probably spring for the enclosed trailer. As a starting point, check out the broker or actual shipping company on the national BBB website. Unresolved issues would be a big red flag.
I personally went the broker route because my main concern was cost. I checked out the broker and the shipper when I found out who it was and everything turned out great. AAA Shipping (www.yousetthecost.com) scheduled a trucking company to pick up my Bronco 7 days after placing the order and was delivered 2 days later (Tucson, AZ to Dallas, TX). Total cost was $700, broken up $125 to the broker and $575 to the actual shipper. Not too bad when you consider the price of gas was around $4/gallon with diesel much more.
Hope this helps!!
Dave
PS-The actual shipping company that hauled the Bronco was called AAA Plus Auto Movers (866.290.3220).
1. Auto Shipping Brokers. There seem to be many brokers out there and this is how they work. You contract with a broker and they place your shipping request on some type of national shipping board. Truckers and their companies will look at this board and see if there is anything out there they can load up on to maximize their trips. There are pros and cons to this. The pro is that you have thousands of trucking companies looking at your request (competitive bidding). The cons are that you don't really know who is moving your car (though you can request insurance cards and department of transportation ID numbers of the actual shipper prior to pick-up). You will end up paying the broker a "finder's fee" once your vehicle is loaded on the truck then you usually end up paying the driver of the truck COD (cash upon delivery). Be careful, sometimes the lowest priced broker quote won't be filled on that national shipping board. If they post a load from point A to point B and request an unreasonable rate (too low), then that will be the last to get filled, if it does. Its not always the case, but the more you pay, the faster you get delivery.
2. Actual shipping companies. Another option is to work directly with a shipping company to arrange shipping. You'll find companies with just a handful of trucks then you'll also see huge national shippers with hundreds of trucks. Going this route allows you to know exactly who is moving your car, giving you the chance to make sure they're reputable, but you might not be able to ship it as fast or inexpensively as a broker could.
3. Work one of those "national shipping boards" yourself. There are a couple do it yourself shipping boards that allow you to post a listing that truckers and shipping companies can view and submit bids (ex. www.uship.com). You cut the middle man out (the broker) and have a fair amount of control of who ships your car (ie., you can deny bids). But, you will need to set a fair price that entices a shipper to look at your ad otherwise it won't be filled.
All in all, you have lots of choices and have pros and cons with each. Once you decide on which route to go, you then need to decide if you want to ship it enclosed or on an open carrier...or if you want to pay extra to have it sit on the top or bottom row. The top is good since you don't risk oil or brake fluid being leaked on it from above, but you open yourself up to possible scratches from tree limbs. It is now just a matter of how you want to approach it. I wouldn't be too picky if it is a project car, but if its restored, I'd do lots of homework on the shipper and probably spring for the enclosed trailer. As a starting point, check out the broker or actual shipping company on the national BBB website. Unresolved issues would be a big red flag.
I personally went the broker route because my main concern was cost. I checked out the broker and the shipper when I found out who it was and everything turned out great. AAA Shipping (www.yousetthecost.com) scheduled a trucking company to pick up my Bronco 7 days after placing the order and was delivered 2 days later (Tucson, AZ to Dallas, TX). Total cost was $700, broken up $125 to the broker and $575 to the actual shipper. Not too bad when you consider the price of gas was around $4/gallon with diesel much more.
Hope this helps!!
Dave
PS-The actual shipping company that hauled the Bronco was called AAA Plus Auto Movers (866.290.3220).
