subject: Choosing A Quality Car Shipping Company [print this page] Chances are, you have never considered shipping your auto before now, and are overwhelmed by the prospects of choosing a company. There are some steps to take in locating the right company for you that will help you in this process.
An important thing you want to consider is how readily the company offers to show their insurance policy. Do not trust your car to companies which do not cover the cargo they handle. Even if they seem decent, they are not doing to well if they cannot afford insurance. They are either already in a lot of legal trouble or they are just waiting to swindle a few more customers before they close and escape with the profits of an uninsured, ill-managed business (a sort of hit and run strategy, not uncommon among people who would be businessmen, yet who cannot adequately run a business).
You want not only a decent company, but a company prosperous enough to offer you several insurance policies you could buy before signing a contract. Depending on what your own current insurance covers, choose between primary or excess insurance. Excess insurance covers what your personal current policy omits. Primary insurance acts independently of your current personal policy. The company should be willing to describe the types of accidents and damage are likely in the case of your car and should help you decide how best to secure it against theft and significant damage.
Once you have these issues settles, you can move on to the next stage of preparing and submitting your car. There are several types of trucks and services. You have probably seen more open carriers than container carriers around. Open carriers are preferred by many customers because they are less expensive. In many cases the distances the cargo has to travel are particularly large, and if weather is fair open trucks often move out more quickly.
Generally shipments by sea use container shipping. The drawbacks of container shipping are the obvious increase in price as well as the less obvious time factor, Auto shipping companies are not quick to ship partial containers so you may have to wait a considerable amount of time before your container is full and ready to depart.
The closed truck or container offers more safety for your vehicle. The incidence of theft and damage is lessened as your car is neither exposed to inclement weather, road conditions or car thieves. If your car is of the rare, expensive, or custom variety or if it has a very long journey to make to its destination, the closed container is your best option regardless of the extra cost involved.
Companies, that is - good companies, offer insurance for every shipped vehicle: any damaged while the car is handled by the company will be compensated. Moreover, they arrange for liability insurance of at least $800, 000 which covers damage to large numbers of cargo. No business company worthy of its name finds it profitable to mishandle or endanger the property of their clients. They make sure you are insured. Beware of fishy organizations which even so much as hint at reluctance to offer adequate insurance or neglect to mention it.
