The FAQ's: Transporting a Non-Running Vehicle

Transporting a car that does not run really isn't the hardest thing to do, but it can complicate matters a bit as not all auto transport carriers can actually pick them up and move them. Transporting in-op cars requires a special winch, which allows carriers to load the vehicle onto their truck without having to drive it (since it doesn't run it can't be driven). Non-op cars that cannot roll typically cannot be moved by most carriers, so make sure that there's at least some way for it to roll (if it doesn't have tires on it, put some on). Chassis are going to be even more difficult to ship, as they cannot roll, brake or steer - chances are your representative will have to find a flatbed tow service that will be able to load it onto their truck.

The FAQ's: Door-to-Door Automobile Shipping

Door-to-door automobile shipping is the primary method of transportation that shippers will use. Door-to-door is different than terminal-to-terminal because with door-to-door transportation, the carrier will arrive right at your door at your house to pick your vehicle up and deliver it right to your new door at the destination. Now, when we say "at your door" we truly mean "as close as humanly possible to the pickup/delivery address you provided" because there are many places that auto shippers can't fit their trucks into. If this is the case with your shipment, chances are the carrier will tell you to meet him at a nearby large parking lot - it's easier to load and unload with plenty of space and it will allow the carrier plenty of room to maneuver his truck. 

The FAQ's: Auto Shipping to Alaska

If you're searching for auto shipping services to or from Alaska there are a few things you should understand. For starters, it's much more expensive than regular auto transport from one mainland state to another; for another, it's more time-consuming; and lastly, it involves an entirely separate shipping company, the port shipper, to help transport your car. The process is very involved - after you book your order with a shipping company, they'll contract a carrier to pick your vehicle up and transport it to the port. The port shipper will then load onto a roll-on/roll-off cargo ship and transport it to the port in Alaska, usually in Anchorage. You should fill out our free online quote request form if you're interested in obtaining price quotes to ship to or from the state of Alaska, and we recommend doing so if you are unsure of the prices or are looking to get more information about Alaska. You can also visit our Auto Shipping to Alaska page for more information.

The FAQ's: Cheap Auto Shipping Quotes

Looking for cheap auto shipping quotes? It's okay, everyone likes a bargain - it's why places like Winco and Wal-Mart exist. But there are times when cheap is better, and times when it's not (though times when cheaper usually means better are pretty rare indeed) - and the auto transport industry is one of those things where you don't want to go bargain hunting.

It's one thing to get a good deal, and another to not pay enough and end up sitting with your car while your shipper either continues to look for a carrier (who's going to laugh at how much they're offering [i.e. your price to move your car]) or just take off with your money and leave you in the lurch. You don't want that, and we don't want that to happen to you. 

So take your time, do your homework, and go with a price that's in the middle - get a bunch of quotes (you can get ten by visiting our website and filling out our free quote form), find a price that fits your budget but that isn't the cheapest of the bunch, and go from there. You'll be surprised at how much better your shipping services end up being, and you can visit our automobile transport FAQ page for more information.

The FAQ's: Will My Vehicle be Driven?

This is a question we get asked about a lot - "will my vehicle be driven if I book with an auto transport company?" And to start, no, your vehicle won't be driven from the pickup to the delivery location. It will be loaded onto the back of an auto transport truck, which will secure it and then transport it - without driving it - to the delivery city. There's no Ferris Bueler moments when it comes to auto transport, not only because it's illegal and will most definitely carry huge penalties, but drivers could lose their licenses - and they won't risk that.

It will, however, need to be driven onto and off of the truck, but you're going to be there watching the driver as he drive it on and off at pickup and delivery, so there's really no worries there. I mean, how else do you expect them to get it onto the truck? 

So I guess, technically, yes, your vehicle will be driven, but it's only going to be like 30 feet all told, so there's really no worries in regards to that aspect of it. The driver will only drive it onto the truck and then back off, and that's it. You can read more about this subject thanks to our handy car transport FAQ.

The FAQ's: Auto Transport Insurance

Insurance for auto shipping is a pretty tricky subject, if you don't know what you're talking about and you don't know much about shipping a car - but for those of you in the know, you know it's really not as bad as you might think.

Your auto shipping carrier must have at least $750,000 of total cargo insurance on his or her auto transport truck; this means that every vehicle on the truck will be fully insured regardless of condition or value and any damages sustained during transport will be dealt with and paid for by the truck's insurance. Your vehicle will be insured from the moment it is loaded until the moment it is unloaded from the carrier, and any insurance policies you have on your vehicle through a personal insurance agent will be relegated to the back seat; you won't submit any damage claims through your own insurance, but rather through the carrier's insurance company.

You can read more about auto transport insurance by visiting our helpful auto shipping FAQ page, and you can also get free auto shipping quotes by filling out our free online quote request form at the top of every page on our website.

The FAQ's: An Introduction

Like we've done twice before, we're going to unveil a brand new blog series that will help you gather even more information about auto transport, vehicle shipping and the car transportation industry in general. Only instead of focusing on cities and states that you can ship to, we're going to try and answer some burning questions about the auto shipping industry in our new series, "The FAQ's" (and if you say it like a word, it sounds like "the facts," which I thought was pretty clever).

In addition to our Auto Shipping by State and City Spotlight segments, we'll be tossing our FAQ blog posts in whenever we feel like it. We'll discuss some of the burning questions posed to us by callers and e-mailers over the years, and hopefully you'll glean some new information about the auto transport industry and how you can get the best quotes to ship your vehicle. You can visit our website to read more frequently asked questions posed to us by our customers, and you can fill out our free form to get some free auto shipping quotes from reputable and reliable auto shipping companies.