How car shipping quote sites work

A car shipping quote site takes your route and sends it to companies that arrange or haul cars. That send is a lead. It is not a booking, not a dispatched truck, and not a locked price. The company you later sign with is the one that can put a carrier on the job.

RideShipper is one such site. It is a free comparison and quote-request service owned by World Media Group LLC. It is not a carrier and not a broker. It does not move the car, set the carrier's price, take a deposit, or insure the vehicle. Companies that receive a request may pay RideShipper for the introduction.

What you can do before any company has your number#

The form has three steps.

1. Route. You enter where the car is, where it is going, the first day it may leave, and open or enclosed.
2. Vehicle. Year, make, and model, or a VIN, and whether the car runs. The page then shows a low-to-high range for open and for enclosed, with the date and the basis of the estimate. You still have not given a name or a phone number. The method is on how price estimates are made.
3. Quotes, only if you want them. Name, email, phone, and a consent checkbox that is not pre-checked. Licensed auto transport companies that serve the route then contact you with quotes. RideShipper does not show a list of those companies beforehand, does not let you pick them, and does not say how many will respond. An optional box, also unchecked, is for a separate household-movers request. Leave it unchecked if you only need the car moved. Prefer to talk? Call (800) 989-8833, 24/7.

Until step 3, no company is called. You can choose "email me this estimate." That email takes an email address, creates no lead, and does not start carrier calls. The longer version is saving a range without sending it.

What the request contains, and what it does not#

If you submit, RideShipper sends the route, the vehicle, the date, and the contact information you typed so licensed auto transport companies that serve the route can quote. It does not send a card number. It does not ask for a Social Security number, a driver's licence number, or a bank account to produce a quote. Do not add those if a caller asks for them in order to hold a rate.

The consent box is an agreement to receive calls and texts from RideShipper and selected auto transport companies about the request. It is not a promise that your phone number stays private. Calling and texting terms are on consent and calling terms. You can opt out by asking not to be contacted or by contacting RideShipper. What those companies may say next is in what happens after you request quotes.

The glossary definition of a lead matches this: a quote request sold to companies. It is not a review and not a booking.

Why a comparison site is not the broker#

49 CFR 371.2 defines a broker as a person who, for compensation, arranges, or offers to arrange, the transportation of property by an authorized motor carrier. FMCSA's June 16, 2023 guidance, at 88 FR 39368, says that merely making information about potential shippers publicly available, regardless of whether a fee is charged, does not require an entity to obtain broker authority, as long as that entity is not otherwise involved in any transaction between the shipper and a motor carrier. The document says it does not have the force and effect of law. RideShipper stays on the information side. It does not negotiate the rate, pick the truck, take freight money, or appear on the bill of lading.

The company that then arranges the haul for pay is the broker, if that is its role, and it needs its own authority. Check that company on the company check. How a marketplace differs from one broker is in marketplace versus broker.

What RideShipper will not ask you to pay#

RideShipper does not charge customers and does not take a deposit. Anyone who says "pay RideShipper to lock the truck" is not describing this service. A deposit, if you choose to send one, is paid to the transport company under that company's contract, after you have its name and its terms. Read deposit red flags first.

The Better Business Bureau's July 21, 2023 alert describes a low quote, a digital-wallet deposit, and then no truck, and a version in which the car is moved and then held for more money. Look up the company that actually asks for money. FMCSA's advisory tells you to check the MC number and, if you pay by card, to make sure the amount you authorized is the amount taken. The steps if a new price appears at the curb are in if the driver wants more money at pickup.

How RideShipper is paid, and the line between a lead and a review, is on how RideShipper makes money. Payment from a company does not change a star rating and does not assign your car to that company.

What the site does not promise#

RideShipper does not promise a locked price, an on-time pickup, or damage cover. Those are promises only a contract with a carrier or a broker can make, and only in the words of that contract. The range can be wrong for your car if the car does not run, is oversized, or must move on a date no carrier wants. When a company quotes you, compare the number, the deposit, and the window. The quote checker is the tool for a number you already received.

The hour after you submit#

You should get a confirmation on the screen and by email. It repeats the range and says that licensed companies serving the route will be in touch. Keep that email. If a caller will not say which company they are, ask before you talk about price.

The confirmation is still not a booking. Nothing is scheduled. No carrier has accepted the car. The next money conversation, if you want one, is with a company that contacts you, under that company's contract. Compare the price, the deposit rule, the pickup window, and whether they will name the carrier before pickup. FMCSA's advisory tells you to be suspicious of a firm that will not say whether it is a broker or a transporter.

RideShipper's own follow-up emails include a link to stop those emails. Stopping those emails does not cancel a contract you later sign with a carrier. To opt out of calls and texts, ask not to be contacted or contact RideShipper. RideShipper does not ask you to pay it to upgrade the request, to see the carrier, or to end the calls.

A first shipment can follow one path through the range, the company check, the contract, and the prep list. That path is the first-time shipper's short course.