The price went up and the car is already on the truck

If the carrier raises the price while your car is already on the truck, you are in the pattern the Better Business Bureau described on July 21, 2023. In reports to BBB Scam Tracker, the company did transport the vehicle, then asked for more money than had been agreed before giving it back. Write the facts down before you pay the new amount. This page is general information. It is not legal advice, and it does not promise that you will get the car back for the original price.

RideShipper does not have your car. It is not the carrier and not the broker. It cannot tell the driver to unload, and it does not set the price. The people who can act are the company on your contract and, if you believe a crime is happening, the police where you are standing.

Write this down before any new payment#

Use your phone notes. Time-stamp them. If you can do it safely, photograph the truck door, the paperwork they want you to sign, and the original contract price on your copy.

• The price in the contract you signed, and the date you signed it.
• The amount they want now, and whether they call it a balance, a fuel fee, a storage fee, or a new rate.
• The name of the person demanding it, and the phone number they give you.
• The company name and USDOT number on the truck door. You can check that number later on the SAFER Company Snapshot. At the curb, photograph it.
• The names on the bill of lading, and whether the delivery copy has a blank price or a new price.
• What they say will happen if you do not pay. Quote their words if you can.

Do not sign a delivery paper that shows a new total you reject. Do not sign a blank price line. A signature is what they will point to later. The page on what the driver asks you to sign separates a condition report from a new price. Delivery day is the ordinary sequence when the price has not changed.

Call in this order#

1. The broker, if you hired one, on the number in the contract. Say the carrier is demanding a price that is not in the contract, and ask them to call the driver while you wait. Write down what the broker tells you to pay.
2. The carrier on the contract, if that is a different number. Ask whether the driver is authorized to collect more than the contract price.
3. Your card issuer, if you are about to pay or already paid, and ask them to note the dispute before a second charge posts. FMCSA's February 10, 2015 advisory says to monitor card charges and to make sure only the authorized amount is taken.
4. The local police, if the car is being withheld for money beyond the contract and you want a report. Ask for a report number. A report is a record. It is not a court order this page can describe.
5. FMCSA's complaint line from the 2015 advisory, 1-888-368-7238 (1-888-DOT-SAFT), Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Use it to report an automobile transporter or broker. Do not expect that call to unload the truck today.

If you pay the extra amount because you need the car, pay in a way that leaves a record. A credit card is the method the BBB alert recommends for this industry, because a fraudulent charge is easier to contest than cash, a wire, or a wallet transfer. Write "paid under protest" on your copy only if they will still hand you the car with those words on the paper. If they refuse, do not lose the car over a phrase. Keep your own notes, the original contract, and the receipt. Your notes still exist even if their paper does not mention the dispute.

After you have the car#

Same day, email the broker and the carrier. Attach the original price, the amount you paid at the curb, and the photos. Ask for a written reason for the increase and for a refund of anything above the contract. Give them a date to answer. Silence is a fact. Save it.

Then call the card issuer if the extra money went on a card. The CFPB says a written billing-error notice goes out within 60 calendar days after the charge appears on the statement, and that the issuer has 30 days to acknowledge it unless the dispute is already resolved. The same page says a problem with the service itself may use a different process. Ask the issuer which one applies to an extra transport charge. Send the letter anyway if they tell you the written notice is required. Keep copies.

Look up the USDOT number you photographed. If it is not the carrier in your contract, say that in the email. A different truck can be a lawful substitute if your contract allows a substitute and names how you will be told. A different truck plus a new price is the fact pattern to report, not a detail to skip.

The contract guide shows where the original price and the change clause sit, so you can quote them in the email. The bill of lading guide shows which copy is yours. The scam patterns page is the wider list. None of them orders a refund.