1. Decide whether shipping solves the real travel problem
Link to this sectionCompare the complete travel plan, including who drives the household’s other vehicle, who travels with children or pets, and whether someone must arrive early for work or keys. Shipping can remove a long drive from that plan, but it introduces a separate vehicle-delivery schedule. List the days you need a car at each end and the alternatives available while yours is with the carrier.
Build two practical scenarios: drive the car yourself or ship it and travel another way. Use real quotes for shipping, travel, overnight stops, and temporary local transportation. Include the time each option requires from the people involved. Avoid treating avoided mileage as your only benefit or the shipping quote as the entire expense. The better option is the one that works across the whole transition.
2. Separate the booking company from the transporting company
Link to this sectionFMCSA distinguishes an auto broker, which arranges transportation, from the carrier that actually transports the vehicle. Both interstate brokers and carriers must be registered with FMCSA. Ask which role the business plays, obtain its identifying information, and check the official registration record. Once a carrier is assigned, verify that company as well rather than assuming the broker’s record also describes the truck arriving for pickup.
Keep the broker’s contact, carrier’s legal name, dispatcher’s number, and driver’s contact in one note. Clarify who can approve a pickup-location change and who handles damage reports. If an unfamiliar company contacts you with new payment instructions, verify the change using a contact you already obtained independently. A last-minute text should not become your only evidence that the handoff arrangements have legitimately changed.
| Party | Role to establish | Ask before handing over the car |
|---|---|---|
| Broker | Arranges a carrier under its booking terms | Who is the assigned carrier, and when does my payment become due? |
| Carrier | Takes custody and transports the vehicle | What are the inspection, insurance, and claims procedures? |
| Pickup representative | Releases the car if you are absent | Do they have the instructions, keys, and condition record? |
| Delivery representative | Inspects and receives the car | Can they document changes before signing the receipt? |
3. Choose the service and read the timing promises
Link to this sectionAsk whether the quote is for open or enclosed transportation and what that means for the vehicle’s exposure during the trip. Describe modifications, low clearance, size, and whether the car starts, steers, and brakes. Do not let an ordinary operable-car quote stand if the vehicle’s condition requires different equipment. Confirm any additional handling requirements before a truck is dispatched, when there is still time to correct the booking.
Distinguish the first date the car is available, the pickup window, and the expected delivery window. Ask exactly which dates, if any, are guaranteed and what the written remedy is if that promise is missed. A quoted transport duration does not necessarily start on the day you submit a reservation. Keep travel and key-handover plans flexible enough to handle the written service you actually purchased.
Plan what changes if vehicle pickup or household delivery moves to a different date. When your moving date changes: rebuild the plan in order →
4. Check contents, coverage, and money separately
Link to this sectionAsk for the rules on belongings left inside the vehicle, including permitted location, quantity, added charges, prohibited items, and whether those contents are covered. Never use one provider’s allowance as an industry rule. For example, Montway’s published terms say it and the carrier are not liable for personal items left in a vehicle. Permission to carry an item and protection against its loss are separate questions.
Request the assigned carrier’s cargo-insurance information and the relevant limits, deductible, exclusions, and reporting instructions. Ask your own auto insurer what applies while the vehicle is transported. Separately record the total charge, who receives each payment, payment methods, cancellation conditions, and charges for unsuccessful pickup or redelivery. Do not infer insurance protection from a registration listing or assume a broker’s assistance promise makes it the carrier’s insurer.
5. Prepare a handoff that someone else could follow
Link to this sectionChoose a pickup location with the carrier rather than assuming a large transporter can reach your driveway. Discuss an alternative meeting point if access is constrained, and arrange your ride away from that location. Clean the car enough to reveal its condition, photograph every side and existing damage, and save the files where your delivery representative can access them. Record the odometer and any agreed accessories included with the vehicle.
Follow the assigned provider’s preparation instructions for keys, alarm operation, fuel or battery level, toll devices, and removable accessories. These details can differ, especially for electric or modified vehicles. At pickup, compare the carrier’s condition report with what you can see and correct omissions before signing. Keep a copy immediately. Montway’s guidance describes the bill of lading as the record of condition at both pickup and delivery.
6. Budget for a vehicle-arrival gap
Link to this sectionWrite a simple car-free plan for the destination: travel from your arrival point, groceries, work, and any essential appointments. Identify which needs can wait and which require a rental, rides, public transportation, or help from someone you know. Decide how you will extend that arrangement if the delivery window changes. An affordable shipping option can become inconvenient when its timing conflicts with a fixed obligation.
Hypothetical example: one household flies on Monday, has a moving truck arrive Tuesday, and expects its car between Wednesday and Friday. Instead of planning errands around Wednesday morning, it arranges transportation through the delivery window and appoints an available adult to receive the car. If delivery moves earlier, that person can inspect it; if it slips, the household already knows which commitments need alternate transportation.
Keep the transport paperwork accessible throughout the journey. Moving documents securely: from sorting to safe arrival →
7. Inspect delivery before closing the record
Link to this sectionArrange enough time and light to compare the delivered vehicle with the pickup record. Look at the body, glass, wheels, and agreed accessories, and document any newly observed differences. Make sure the delivery document reflects what you observed before signing. If visibility is poor or the record is inaccurate, contact the carrier and broker immediately to resolve how inspection will proceed under the contract rather than signing an unqualified receipt on trust.
Save your delivery photographs, signed documents, payment receipts, and messages. Follow the carrier’s claims instructions promptly if a problem appears, and check any separate broker notification requirement. Montway’s own terms emphasize damage notation at delivery and contain provider-specific reporting conditions; those conditions should not be treated as universal law. A careful handoff preserves evidence, while a written service plan makes it clear where the next question belongs.
- Compare shipping plus temporary transportation with the full driving plan.
- Verify the broker and assigned interstate carrier separately.
- Confirm pickup and delivery windows and any written guarantee.
- Read contents restrictions, cargo protection, payment, and cancellation terms.
- Share pickup photographs and instructions with the delivery representative.
- Inspect the car and save accurate condition records at both handoffs.