How to Choose an Auto Transport Company

Choose the company that will tell you who the motor carrier is before you pay. A broker arranges the truck. A motor carrier drives it. Bigfella Auto Express is the Houston broker. The assigned carrier is the company that shows up.

What to check

Match the business name on the quote to the company you looked up. Bigfella’s brokerage authority is USDOT 4133743 and MC-1583439. The carrier on your assignment has separate numbers. Confirm those on the FMCSA SAFER site. Confirm the quote is for your vehicle, your two ZIPs, and the equipment you selected, not a national range.

The current booking process is a $1 authorization hold to submit the request. You review the assigned carrier and the final price before payment. A page that still asks for a deposit to “hold a spot” is not describing this process. Do not book the same car with two brokers at once. Both can find a truck.

What a check is not

Authority and a cargo certificate of $150,000 or more are the checks Bigfella uses before dispatch. That is not a perfect score, an on-time percentage, or a promise that nothing can go wrong. Ask for the carrier’s name before you approve. Read broker versus carrier and the broker and carrier article.

Read next: carrier verification, cargo insurance, Houston.

Questions

What should I look for in an auto transport company?

Look for a consistent business name, a Direct Quote for your vehicle and route, and a rule that you approve the carrier and the final price before you pay. Verify the carrier’s USDOT number, not only the broker’s.