Auto Transport Carrier Vs. Auto Transport Broker

As you are considering options for a potential car move? If so, one huge decision needs to be made: Should I use State To State Towing carrier or Auto Transport broker to move my car? Let’s look at the difference and let you decide!

The Car Shipping carriers are the ones that move your car; they have trucks, carry insurance and proper paperwork to move your car. Many of these “Old school” Vehicle Shipping do not advertise, but many have a base of customer that have used them for years. Traditionally, they rely on Auto Shipping dispatch boards (online databases) and brokers (middle men) “sell” the customers and post the cars for the Transport carriers to move them. The next generation of State To State Towing understand and utilize the internet to get customers direct. They have websites, they advertise and they are trying to aggressively grow their business through car dealerships, car action houses and even moving companies. The truth is, many of the people that you speak to about moving your car are brokers and you will only speak to the Auto Transport carrier when they pick up your car.

Dealing With Vehicle Shipping Carriers - The Upside
- With Car Shipping carriers, you deal directly with the car shipping company that moves your car.
- You may pay less dealing directly with Auto Shipping carriers because you don’t have to pay the middleman.
- In the unlikely event of damage to your can, they are ones that carry the insurance and the people you need to deal with (not the Transport broker).
- Prices are competitive and negotiable.

Dealing With Transport Carriers - The Downside
- They may not transport to the area you need your car shipped to because many State To State Towing carriers only run to a handful of states.
- It may take some time for their trucks to get to you, especially if they only have 1 Auto Transport truck and it is on the other side of the country. In those cases, you will either need to wait for them to get to the area, or they will call another company to move your car (which is ok).

The broker is a middleman. They are bonded but they do not own trucks, carry Car Shipping insurance, and are not authorized to physically move your vehicle. Their job is facilitating the shipment of your car. They have extremely large networks of Vehicle Shipping companies at their disposal that they use to move your car when and where you need it moved to. Basically, their job is to “sell” themselves and their logistics services to you.

In nearly all cases, they will never see or touch your vehicle during Auto Shipping. They are like other middlemen; they take a cut of the total price. Because Transport prices and percentages paid to brokers and carriers are not “policed” by a governing body and you many require you to pay a nonrefundable deposit up front to even begin moving the car. This deposit is typically a percentage of the entire sale (which can be as high as 50%) or charge a flat rate (starting anywhere from $50 per car up). Either way, these State To State Towing brokers will get their cut first and that is why they require a deposit. This is how many Auto Transport brokers work, but not all. There are some exceptions.

Dealing With Car Shipping Brokers - The Upside
- Have large networks of Vehicle Shipping carriers and can get you exactly where you need to go when you need to get there.
- Not limited to location (where their trucks are).
- Prices can be competitive and negotiable, but you will always pay more. Granted you are paying a higher price because of their Auto Shipping expertise, but they will cost more none the less.

Dealing With Car Shipping Brokers - The Downside
In most cases, the Auto Shipping brokers will get you where you need to go, but they need to Transport carriers to do the job, so you are paying a “middle man” to work out the details so you will pay more to get the job done. If you can find a Transport carrier that run to the area you need to go here, it might be a better option, but not always.

Beyond that, there are three types of auto transport companies:
1. State To State Towing Carrier: This is the company that owns trucks and in most cases is going to ship your car.
2. Auto Transport Broker: This is a company that doesn’t own trucks and will use a network of Car Shipping carriers to move your vehicle.
3. Car Shipping Carrier/Broker: This is the company that owns trucks and in some cases will ship your car, BUT they also may use their network for carriers to transport your car. This is the best of both worlds.

All of these companies can get your vehicle shipped from point A to point B, but with the investment of a little time and research, you can be assured that you will find the perfect fit for all your Vehicle Shipping needs.