The auto transport industry has grown a lot, thanks to the exposure the internet brings. Nowadays you can buy a car from anywhere in the world, and it will be shipped to you. Many car dealerships, big and small, sell cars online, as it has proven to raise profits significantly.
- 1. What is Car Transport?
Car Transport is a process of shipping a vehicle between the point of origin and the point of destination. It can be international car shipping or state-to-state auto transport. It used to be common only for car manufacturers, dealers and brokers, but today, thanks to the World Wide Web, it is a common service for a general consumer.
- 2. Preparing your vehicle for shipping
Preparing your car for transport is solely your responsibility. It’s nothing complicated and should not take a lot of time. You can also ask your auto shipping agent for tips how to prepare your car so the shipping goes smoothly.
- 3. What about insurance?
It is possible that your car insurance company will cover your car while in transit. Auto transport companies will insure your vehicle for the time of shipping, but the items inside your vehicle will not be insured. You can also ask your home insurance agent if they can cover the items you ship with your vehicle. But still it is better not to place anything inside your car when you ship it.
- 4. Door-to-door and terminal-to-terminal auto shipping
You can ship your car either door-to-door or terminal-to-terminal. The first option is the most convenient, both for a company and a client, but the second option is a money savior.
- 5. Shipping in an Open Trailer
Most people ship their cars using open car carriers. This kind of carriers can carry up to 12 vehicles and are a cheaper option, which is the reason the majority of auto shipping customers go with this option. But you have to remember your vehicle can get dirty during auto transport in an open car carrier. Some people want to protect their cars better, so they choose a different option.
- 6. Shipping in an Enclosed Trailer
Another option is shipping in an enclosed trailer. It will protect your car from dust, dirt and sand, but the price will be higher. It is a good option for shipping luxury cars.
- 7. Motorcycle Transport
Motorcycle shipping is a bit different from car shipping. Your motorcycle will be secured onto a specially designed pallet and loaded into a truck with a lift gate.
- 8. Shipping an exotic car
If you need to ship a rare classic car or an exotic vehicle, you should make sure to choose a reliable auto transport company that has experience working with this kind of vehicles. Shipping exotic cars takes extra care, so find a company that can provide it.
- 9. Estimated time of delivery
Don’t forget that the dates of pick-up and delivery are only estimates. Traffic, weather, truck breakdowns – all of this can affect how long it will take for your vehicle to be shipped.
This is such an informative and helpful article, thank you so much for providing this information. Some of this seems like common sense after reading it, but I would not have though about it beforehand. Shipping my car is something I definitely want to leave to PROFESSIONAL auto transport service who takes their time, cares about what their customers and communicates throughout the shipment because that is really important to my husband and I. There is so much stress already during this process and we want to know we are taken care of. Businesses like Global Auto Transport who takes the time to educate customers on their options, the pros and cons of each and cost/benefits of each of the options clearly care about them! Given that we have a high-end luxury car being moved, I am pretty confident we will be using an enclosed trailer because my husband would be very upset if anything happened to his baby (haha). Thanks again for all you have done up to this point and sending us these great articles, we look forward to a great experience and so far you have more than exceeded our expectations.
This is such an informative article to someone who knows very little about auto transport outside of having seen cars being shipped in open trailers on the highway! To the layperson (like me), it can seem like a “risky” way to move your car: entrusting it to a service that may have it attached on an open trailer that offers seemingly little protection to the vehicle. However, being informed about different options for auto transport, in my experience after reading this article, helps me to trust auto transport service. I had never considered hiring a service to transport my car when moving long distance, but it is definitely an option I will consider in the future.
Thanks for the amazing tips, I really appreciate.
Amazing post! Thanks for sharing and keep up the great work.