Auto Transport Tips: Why Paperwork is Often Not Required to Ship
If there’s one thing that our capitalistic society has perfected, it’s paperwork. In any and almost every aspect of life, paperwork is required to do just about anything. Want to buy a car? Gotta fill out the paperwork! Signing up for a credit card? Gotta put your John Hancock on a contract of some kind or other.
As a society, we run on paperwork, and just about every single transaction and agreement between two parties has to be written out, signed, stamped, dated, the whole nine yards.
That’s what makes the auto transport industry so much different – while you will have to sign some paperwork (the terms and conditions when you book your order, to be more specific, and also the bill of lading – but that’s a subject for another blog post), on the whole you actually won’t need all that much.
People ask a lot about whether or not they need things like the title of the vehicle or proof of registration when they are shipping a vehicle, and the simple answer is no. The main reason as to why is the fact that there are a lot of different people and businesses that need to ship vehicles, and not all of them are in a position to even have the title of the vehicle on them.
Junk cars, for instance, or vehicles that are destined for dismantling or scrap metal – those vehicles are often abandoned, with no paperwork attached to them whatsoever, and are in no fit state to repair but they can’t just sit where they’re at. And for those that are going to be repaired, well – they have to get to the person buying them somehow, even if there is no title or registration.
There are so many different instances of vehicles actively not having the appropriate paperwork on them that requiring said paperwork in order to ship a vehicle would be ludicrous. The main ways that car transporters ensure that they ship the right vehicle for the right customer is to keep an eye on VIN numbers – oftentimes, a VIN number will be required before the vehicle can be picked up, and many companies will ask for the vehicle submodel and also the license plate number and the color of the vehicle.
If you’re interested in shipping a vehicle to or from anywhere in the United States, take a minute to fill out our free online auto transport quote request form. When you do, you’ll receive a free, customized quote to ship your vehicle. We price our shipments to move when you need it moved, unlike some companies. If you have questions about our services, or if you need some help getting your quote, give us a call any time at 800-930-7417 to speak to one of our live agents today.
Since 2007 Dave has written all the content and blogs for American Auto Shipping and during this time added the duties of customer support and transport logistics.
He currently resides in Washington with his three kids and their mom and cat. A fan of Marvel movies and good stories, when not shipping cars Dave can be found working on his novel, enjoying a good book or playing some tournament HALO.
- When to go with an Enclosed Transport - October 2, 2023
- Understanding California’s EV Mandate - August 1, 2023
- Top Reasons Auto Shippers Are Delayed - January 9, 2023
