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Tips to Consider before shipping your car to California

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Home  |  Car Transport   |   Tips to Consider before shipping your car to California

Relocating from one state to another is not without its hassles. Shipping your car, for instance, is an undertaking that most find overwhelming. Fortunately, with some adequate planning and research, the process becomes surprisingly streamlined. Before delving into the details of how to ship your car to the Golden State, here are some variables you’ll want to mull over first.

  • How much does your car weigh?
  • What is the make, model, and year of your vehicle?
  • How much are you willing to spend on a shipping company?
  • How far are you shipping from point A to point B?
  • Will the weather affect the exterior of the car?

Don’t Be Lazy, Research Like Crazy

Above all else, it’s crucial to do your homework and select a shipping company that caters to your wants, needs, and preferences. Finding a reliable company that ensures customer satisfaction is paramount. Since most companies are quick to sell themselves as a well-oiled machine, it’s prudent to read some testimonials, review the ratings, and browse user comments. What’s more, comparing prices and quotes will help you land on a reasonable auto transport company that complements your budget.

*Pro Tip: Look for seasonal discounts and specials. Winter prices are generally the lowest.

Think Ahead

Be sure you know when and where you’ll be arriving before booking a transport service. Shipping companies warn against poor planning. Some people get so bogged down in the details that they inadvertently ignore some of the most important logistics including time and place. If you’ve booked a company that’s hours away from your destination, it makes for an inconvenient process. With that said, it’s critical to be aware of when and where you’ll be arriving.

Have Your Car Prepared For the Haul

Remove any expensive or personal items from your vehicle before it gets shipped off. While this tip may seem like a no-brainer, there are plenty of valuables that fall to the wayside during the mayhem of moving. Moreover, experts recommend keeping your gas tank near empty so as to avoid additional costs. Oftentimes, a car with a full tank of gas ends up paying more for extra weight in fuel.

Frequently Asked Questions

Answers to Your Car Moving Questions

The hardest thing for people researching car moving companies to understand is that the prices they are getting are not hard and fast gaurantees, but rather ESTIMATES of what one company thinks it will take to get a vehicle moved promptly versus another company's opinion of what it will take. Don't be fooled, there are not carriers committed to take your vehicle at these quoted prices, the company you choose will still have to get to work getting a carrier to commit to move it at the price they quote you.

Your total price breaks down into two parts, the broker's fee (or 'deposit' as everyone calls it) and the carriers fee (your COD amount) Make no mistake about this, EVERYONE YOU ARE GETTING SALES CALLS FROM IS GOING TO BROKER YOUR MOVE. In this industry, there are brokers who try to fool you into thinking that they are the actual carriers and there are an equal amount of carriers who sell themselves on the fact that they have a truck or two but are not being honest about the fact that they broker out 90% of the orders they book. Here is a quick easy way to tell, if a company takes an up front fee, whether they call it a deposit or any other name, they are a broker. Carriers do not take any payment until the vehicle is delivered.

In our opinion, you are crazy to do so. Have you ever been paid up front for the work that you perform for your employer? Why would you pay a fee up front when there are reliable and trustworthy companies like ours that won't ask for it until we provide you with your carriers details?

The average transit time from pick up to delivery on any vehicle going coast to coast will be between one and two weeks. 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.

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