Auto Transport Tips: What You Need For Pickup
The auto transportation industry is fairly lax in terms of what you’ll need on-hand come pickup time. Obviously you’ll need the vehicle there, but aside from that you really don’t need to show much of anything in terms of proof of ownership and the like. Because of how many different businesses utilize auto transportation services, it would put a lot of strain on a lot of people to require something such as the title or proof of registration. Not only that, but the way the industry works in and of itself is a big reason why proof of ownership of a specific vehicle and the like – or at the very least title and registration papers – is not required by law. Auto transporters don’t adhere to specific schedules – their transportation schedules are much more broad in terms of dates and times and the like. Often it is not until your carrier is physically in your city or general area that they will call you to arrange pickup, and because of this forcing you to have all that paperwork on hand come pickup time can be frustrating, to say the least.
Insurance, too, is not required for the transportation of your vehicle. We’ve covered auto transport insurance before, but you also need to know that your personal insurance on your vehicle will be put to the side, as the auto transport company‘s insurance will pay for any damages sustained during loading, transport, or during unloading. This is important to know because the only recourse you will have regarding an insurance claim will be with the car shipper’s insurance (which means make sure you get the truck’s insurance information before your vehicle is picked up – it’s required by law for carriers to give it to any customer who asks, but it is not required that they give it to you without you asking. If you don’t ask for it they won’t give it to you, in other words.). Insurance is not only not required because the vehicle is already insured, but many businesses have no need to insure the vehicles they ship – for instance, used car dealerships, or repossession companies. Therefore, like all cargo, automobiles are covered by the trucking company’s cargo insurance.
The keys, however, will be required, because the auto transporter will have to drive your vehicle onto and off of the truck in order to load it properly. If you don’t have the keys to the vehicle you should consider it a non-operational vehicle, because you can’t start it without the keys usually. The interior of your vehicle should be clean and you should also have another method of personal transportation available to you, so you can get around after your vehicle is picked up. You will need to sign the Bill of Lading as well – this document is quite important, and we recommend you read through it thoroughly so as not to have any misunderstandings should anything untoward happen to your vehicle during transport. For more questions, or if you have concerns regarding what you’ll need for pickup of your vehicle, call us toll-free at 800-930-7417 to speak to one of our live, helpful staff members. You can also fill out our free quote form to get a free auto transport quote right away.
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.
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