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Understanding Car Shipping Rates

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Home  |  Car Shipping   |   Understanding Car Shipping Rates

car shipping ratesWhen you move from one state to another, or completely across the country, it might make sense to have your car shipped. This can leave you with better options for how to get to your new home. You could fly, drive with your spouse or moving partner or drive a moving truck yourself, without having to worry about towing the car with you.

When you decide to transport your car, you will be presented with several different car shipping rates.   Making sense of these different rates options can be confusing.  Why are some rates more than other, are you getting better service or more options from one carrier vs. another?

Here are some reasons why car shipping rates differ.

Shipping Distance:
Distance will impact the rates significantly.  Remember that the carrier has to pick up and deliver door to door, so your specific location will affect rates.

Shipping Date:
Different carriers have different availability and schedules.  If one carrier is experience a slow time, they'll most likely offer a competitive rate.  If the carrier has a tight schedule, the may charge more, and take only the most lucrative contracts.

Car Carrier Type:
The type of shipping method you choose will also impact the car shipping rates. You can have your car shipped on an open carrier or inside of a closed carrier. The closed carrier will cost more because that type of shipping method protects your car from extreme heat, rain, cold weather and the general dust and debris that cannot be avoided on the road.

If you care comparing shipping rates, Safe-Direct Car Shipping can help you find the best prices and the highest quality. You will not only have access to our wide variety of carrier companies, you will also be able to depend on the us help you manage your details, such as the type of carrier you prefer and the dates of your move.

We'll explain the rates to you, so that you know exactly what you are getting and how the process works.

We are the only car shipping company that offers a full 100% damage free guarantee.  If your car is in any way damaged, our carriers will cover the costs, or WE PAY!

We have earned some of the industries highest recommendations and reviews.  Give us a call today for a free quote!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Honest Answers to Your Car Shipping Questions

Yes, we always ask for your specific pickup and delivery addresses, if the carrier can get right to the addresses you provide, they will. If the addresses that you give us are not safely accessible for a Multi-car carrier, however, you will need to make arrangements with the driver to meet at a nearby location where the carrier can safely get in and out.

People do it all the time (rarely for free) but the official answer is no.

Not what you wanted to hear, we know, but that is the honest answer.

We are not licensed to broker the shipment of household goods and, likewise, no car carrier that operates in the USA is licensed to transport them from state to state either. Despite what you might be being told by other car shipping companies you may speak with.

Remember, at the end of the day we're all salespeople, and the true answer to this question is not a great selling point.

You will hear a lot of companies tell you that you can put up to 100 pounds of items in the trunk, but that is not entirely true. That fact is that items of that amount are fairly common and the department of transportation is probably not going to split hairs and fine the trucker over items of that amount, provided they are not over their weight limit. They could fine them, however, if they see a vehicle stuffed full of personal items so the car carrier will most likely try to negotiate something with you to cover themselves against any costs they could incur. It's not something we can build into your contract though.

We have a short and helpful video on this topic in our user videos.

Only in rare cases and car carriers will usually charge a premium to make it happen.

All dates given by car carriers are typically estimates and projections.

For this reason (and to keep your cost down) we ask that you build in some flexibility and give us the earliest possible date you would be WILLING to release the vehicle, even though it may not be your preferred date.

We'll put you in direct contact with your car carrier and the driver will also typically call you the afternoon or evening before your pick up and delivery (they won't just show up unannounced, and if they do we want to hear about it). However, car carriers are out on the road battling traffic, weather and any number of other factors that can and do throw them off of their pickup and delivery projections from time to time.

If the projected dates we give you come and you are unable to make contact with your carrier, please call our office immediately so that we may help resolve the situation.

The average transit time from pick up to delivery on any vehicle going coast to coast will average 7 to 10 days. From there you can figure your transit time based on how far your vehicle is traveling, i.e. from either coast to the Midwest might average 3-7 days.

Yes!

Even better, we do not even ask for payment until we have you confirmed for pickup by a safe, reliable, fully insured, direct car carrier. If for any reason you do not ship your car with the carrier that we arrange for you, there is no fee.

The fees paid directly to the carrier however, (in most cases, their fees are not paid until your vehicle is delivered) are not directly controlled by us, so any requests for a refund of the carrier's portion would need to be addressed with the carrier directly.

Of course! And you are always backed by our Damage Free Guarantee policy.

Part of what you pay us for is to verify that the car carrier that we put you on is covered by the proper amount of insurance and that everything is up to date.

There is never any additional cost to you for this coverage, and their insurance is always primary.

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