May 15, 2015 | Posted in CVAT | By Central Valley Auto Transport
The best way to feel comfortable with handing over your car to a vehicle shipping company is to understand exactly how car transport services operate — and this includes bringing up those common myths that are rarely clarified! Below you’ll find three of the most common misconceptions about the auto shipping industry:
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Open carriers are unsafe.
It’s true that car shipping services usually advise customers to ship antique cars and luxury cars in enclosed carriers simply because there’s a little more protection, but for regular cars, an open multi-car carrier is usually just fine. Each car is securely fastened onto the carrier and the drivers are trained to operate the carrier safely, so for regular passenger vehicles, there’s no need to pay 60% more just for an enclosed carrier.
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Auto transport prices are unpredictable.
It is important to remember that prices for shipping a car are likely to vary between companies, and even from season to season. Nevertheless, there are some trends that are fairly predictable, like higher shipping prices in the summer (usually about $200 to $300 more expensive than in the winter).
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Auto transport brokers are a waste of money.
The vehicle shipping industry is pretty big (it’s worth about $12 billion in the U.S. alone), and because 98% of auto transporting services own and operate just one or two carrier trucks, the best way to provide consistent information for consumers is to allow a third party (the broker) to work between consumers and shipping services. Additionally, because there are so many legal and financial restrictions involved with auto transporting, a shipping broker will be able to help with the paperwork and restrictions.
Are there any misconceptions that we missed? Any myths you’ve heard about this industry before, or any questions you still have? Feel free to leave any thoughts down in the comments section!
