Red Flags and Green Flags When Choosing an Auto Transporter

Carrier companies differ in several aspects when it comes to price range, location, transport method, service, reviews, among others. That’s why choosing an auto transporter is considered as one of the most important steps during the process.

This doesn't necessarily depend on requesting a service from the first company you find on the internet. It’s about taking time for research and taking notes of the good side and downsides of each company. This will not only ensure you a successful transport for your vehicle, but also will allow you to determine what should not be accepted during auto transport.

Red Flags When Choosing Your Shipping Company

Let’s talk about red flags, or warning signs when selecting your auto transport company. Some of them are easy to notice, either on their company channels, or directly through their customer service protocol. Let’s take a look at them.

Extremely Low Prices

When researching for your auto transport company, most of them allow you to request free quotes before actually hiring the service. As such, you’ll get an approximate estimate of what your shipping will cost. This price estimate is generally competitive among shipping companies. Costs aren’t either too high or extremely low, since price competition is one of the most important and remarkable signs of a trustable shipping company.

However, the risk of hiring a fraudulent or misleading company actually exists and is very common among the industry. These types of companies take advantage of customers by offering very low prices, seeming very attractive and catchy for new customers.

The thing here is, that most car carriers won’t move vehicles if the price is too low. They will move them according to the average price range at the moment within different transport companies. As such, customers that hire the service without knowing this, will eventually pay for a terrible or even a non-existing shipping service.

Always request different quotes, and select the ones that are affordable for you within the average price range you researched.

False Delivery Promises

An average trustable auto shipping company will assign you reliable shipping dates, prices and transport methods according to your vehicle’s features. This will ensure you a successful delivery and date for picking up and delivering your car.

Unfortunately, a huge red flag when hiring a shipping service is receiving assigned dates or facts that don’t get accomplished throughout the process.

If your selected auto transport company is constantly changing the assigned dates, offering you a price and then charging you another one, offering you different transport methods but not having them ready for you prior to the shipment, things are not going to end up as positive as they seemed to be.

Therefore, try choosing a new and reliable shipping company before things turn for the worse. This is a common warning sign of a non-trustable auto transporter.

Unfair Competition Among Companies

Reading about the benefits that each company offers to their client is a good way of getting to know more about the company, but also, is a positive marketing factor for them in order to gain new customers as well. Most of these reviews tend to be about important information that customers like to know, fun facts and features that make each company special among the others.

But also, there are certain auto transport companies that like to compare their services with others, and expose negative or fake information about their competitors. For example, if you’re reading an article about transportation rates and the company mentions another company without a positive intention, then this is for sure the first red flag.

And, if this company mentions the exact name of their competition and describes negative information about it, don’t think twice and research for a new company. Nasty competition practices shouldn't be accepted by customers and are a major sign of a poor and dishonest service.

No Professional Carriers

Carriers are one of the most important elements of a successful and reliable auto transport company. They are the ones in charge of the whole process and safety of your vehicle, including the loading and unloading process.

As such, when a company doesn't give you detailed information about their carriers, doesn’t ensure carrier professionalism, and has low carrier industry ratings, that’s for sure a warning sign. This will potentially lead to unsuccessful vehicle shipping and higher risks of getting your car damaged due to non-experienced carriers.

No Carrier Insurance

Insurance is a must when hiring an auto transport service for your car. This will prevent you from having to pay for vehicle repairs in case of any damage during transit. However, if the company doesn’t offer you any insurance coverage, that’s a sign of poor service.

Reliable and professional auto shipping companies always provide you insurance coverage for your car regardless of distance, type, or transport method. That said, you should always check that you are allowed to have access to insurance by your company in case of a vehicle accident.

Green Flags of a Great Transport Company

Now that you’ve known the signs of a shipping company you should not rely on, check out the best details that show you're selecting a professional company.

Great Customer Reviews

If the company’s customer reviews are often positive, updated and reflect a successful service, then that’s a sign that the company is professional and has a good reputation of great vehicle shipping.

These reviews are often shown off on the company’s website, or in reliable customer review websites about car shipping. They are very helpful, especially for new customers.

Transparent quotes and policies

Make sure the price you are paying at the end of the service is the same amount you agreed to before your final booking. This demonstrates transparency and trustworthiness on the company, which relies also on your vehicle’s safety.

Also, read the company policies before signing any document, and make sure you were told about them previously and that you agree with them.

Consistent and professional customer service

From the moment you request a quote until you get your vehicle delivered, a customer service agent should be always tracking the journey, responding to your inquiries, being available for you during the entire process, and treating you in a nice, professional manner.

You can notice this by the way they speak to you, their variety of customer service channels (phone, website, chat bot), and the time they take for solving your questions or issues.

Shipping a Vehicle with AmeriFreight

Among all auto transport companies, AmeriFreight is one of the leading ones in the nation. With many years of experience and professional carriers, brokers and customer service agents, we ensure an excellent experience during vehicle shipping. We will offer you: